Mondo Novo
Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo (1727-1804) . Mondo Novo (1791). Fresco. In the collection of Ca' Rezzonico, Venice.
The fresco is part of a series of frescoes created by Giandomenico for the family villa at Zianigo, near Mirano. The villa fell into disrepair and since 1936 the frescoes have been relocated to Ca' Rezzonico. This particular fresco shows a group of masked carnival participants with their backs turned to the viewer. They are looking at an attraction of the carnival of Venice, a panopticon called Mondo Novo that showed pictures from exotic lands.
The curators note that in the fresco Giandomenico operates a reversal of the classical conception of representation: the scene is not shown to the viewer but paradoxically denies itself to the viewer's gaze. In fact, we are not looking at a specific image, but at someone who in turn is looking at something else. There is always an element of humor or even sarcasm in this type of pictures.
It reminds me of this Danish picture painted much later but in the same spirit
Mondo Novo
Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo (1727-1804) . Mondo Novo (1791). Fresco. In the collection of Ca' Rezzonico, Venice.
The fresco is part of a series of frescoes created by Giandomenico for the family villa at Zianigo, near Mirano. The villa fell into disrepair and since 1936 the frescoes have been relocated to Ca' Rezzonico. This particular fresco shows a group of masked carnival participants with their backs turned to the viewer. They are looking at an attraction of the carnival of Venice, a panopticon called Mondo Novo that showed pictures from exotic lands.
The curators note that in the fresco Giandomenico operates a reversal of the classical conception of representation: the scene is not shown to the viewer but paradoxically denies itself to the viewer's gaze. In fact, we are not looking at a specific image, but at someone who in turn is looking at something else. There is always an element of humor or even sarcasm in this type of pictures.
It reminds me of this Danish picture painted much later but in the same spirit