Giovanni Bellini Celebrated Across Three Vicenza Venues

Vicenza hosts a three-venue exhibition for Giovanni Bellini (1430–1516), featuring only three works but offering a focused perspective on the artist. The initiative, organized by the Comune di Vicenza, Intesa San Paolo, and the Curia, includes the Baptism of Christ from Santa Corona, the Crucifixion with Jewish Cemetery from Banca Popolare di Vicenza (normally inaccessible at Palazzo Thiene), and the Transfiguration of Christ on loan from Museo di Capodimonte in Naples—an artwork that has left the museum only four times in 300 years. The exhibition traces Bellini's deep ties to Vicenza, a city that maintained privileged relations with Venice and commissioned works from the painter. The Transfiguration, described as a magical landscape and light representation, originally adorned a chapel in Vicenza Cathedral before moving to the Farnese collection in Parma and then to Naples with Charles of Bourbon. The Crucifixion features recognizable Vicenza landmarks like the Duomo and Piazza dei Signori tower. The exhibition runs until December 11, 2016, and January 29, 2017, as part of the 500th anniversary celebrations of Bellini's death. A related conference was held at Fondazione Cini in Venice. Critic Roberto Longhi called Bellini 'one of the great poets of Italy' in 1946. Future events include the exhibition 'Bellini e i belliniani' opening in February 2017 at Conegliano Veneto, originating from the Accademia dei Concordi di Rovigo.