The Palazzo Basadonna Giustinian Recanati, also known as Ca’ Giustinian-Recanati, is a historic palace in Venice, Italy, located in the Dorsoduro sestiere at Fondamenta Priuli 1012, near the Rio di San Trovaso and the Gallerie dell’Accademia. Originally built in the 14th century, this Venetian palazzo exemplifies the city’s architectural evolution, with significant renovations by the renowned Baroque architect Baldassare Longhena in the 17th century. Today, it serves as the seat of the Liceo Artistico Statale, a public art school, and is occasionally open for guided tours. Its rich history, traditional Venetian fontego design, and surviving neoclassical decorations make it a significant yet lesser-known gem in Venice’s architectural landscape.
The Palazzo Basadonna Giustinian Recanati was first constructed in
the 14th century for a branch of the Contarini family, one of Venice’s
most prominent patrician dynasties. Its original Gothic structure
reflected the architectural norms of the period, designed as a fontego
(a combined residence and warehouse) to support the family’s commercial
activities. In 1626, the palace was acquired by the brothers Alvise,
Antonio, and Giovanni Basadonna, a wealthy merchant family with ties to
the Venetian nobility. They commissioned Baldassare Longhena, the
leading Baroque architect of Venice, to modernize the building, aligning
its style with contemporary tastes while preserving its traditional
layout.
In 1758, the palace passed to the Priuli family, who
undertook a significant restoration of the interior, adding neoclassical
stucco and frescoes that remain partially preserved. By the 19th
century, it came into the possession of the Giustinian Recanati family,
counts who donated the property to the Comune di Venezia to serve as an
educational institution, as noted in an epigraph on the building. The
palace housed the Istituto Universitario di Architettura di Venezia
before becoming the Liceo Artistico Statale in 1983, following a major
restoration between 1970 and 1975 to adapt it for scholastic use.
The Basadonna family’s extensive art collection, once housed in the
palace, was dispersed over time, a loss lamented by historians. In 2002,
efforts to combat Venice’s acqua alta (high tide flooding) included
raising the ground floor’s terrazzo level by approximately 30 cm, and
plans were initiated to restore the garden based on a design by Giuseppe
Jappelli (1783–1852), a noted landscape architect.
The Palazzo Basadonna Giustinian Recanati is situated in Dorsoduro, a
culturally rich district known for its artistic institutions and quieter
ambiance compared to San Marco. Located at Fondamenta Priuli 1012, it
overlooks the Rio di San Trovaso, facing Palazzo Bollani and near the
Palazzi Contarini degli Scrigni e Corfù. Its proximity to the Gallerie
dell’Accademia (0.3 km), Ca’ Rezzonico (0.5 km), and the Chiesa di San
Raffaele Arcangelo (0.4 km) places it in a vibrant neighborhood ideal
for exploring Venetian art and architecture.
The closest
vaporetto stops are Accademia (Lines 1 and 2) and Zattere (Lines 2, 5.1,
5.2, 6, 10, and 16), both within 300 meters, making the palace easily
accessible by water. The Ponte delle Maravegie, a picturesque bridge,
connects the palace to the surrounding area, and the Santa Lucia railway
station is approximately 1.5 km away, reachable by vaporetto or a
20-minute walk. The palace’s location near the Zattere waterfront offers
scenic views of the Giudecca Canal, enhancing its appeal.
As the
Liceo Artistico Statale, the palace is primarily an educational
facility, limiting public access to its interior. However, guided tours
are occasionally available through the school or cultural organizations,
particularly for those interested in its architecture and history. The
exterior, including the main façade along Fondamenta Priuli and the rear
garden, can be admired from public spaces. Visitors should contact the
Liceo Artistico or the Città Metropolitana di Venezia for tour
availability.
The Palazzo Basadonna Giustinian Recanati is a fine example of a
Venetian fontego, a hybrid residence and warehouse designed for trade,
with a structure that evolved from its 14th-century Gothic origins to a
Mannerist and early Baroque aesthetic under Longhena’s intervention. The
building’s current form, largely constructed between 1640 and 1660, is
attributed to a follower of Francesco Contini, though Longhena’s
modernization is well-documented.
Exterior
The main façade,
facing the Rio di San Trovaso, is simple and linear, deliberately
evoking 16th-century Venetian models rather than the ornate Baroque
forms Longhena employed elsewhere (e.g., Ca’ Pesaro). This restraint
contrasts with the exuberant façade of San Moisè, aligning more closely
with the understated elegance of Palazzo Gussoni. The façade is
organized over three levels:
Ground Floor: Features small
rectangular windows and wide portals, typical of a fontego’s warehouse
function, with a portico for loading goods.
First Piano Nobile:
Dominated by a large Venetian window (a multifoil arch with columns),
flanked by three asymmetrically arranged pairs of single-light windows,
a hallmark of Longhena’s adaptation of Renaissance motifs.
Second
Piano Nobile: Repeats the single-light windows in a regular pattern,
maintaining the façade’s balanced proportions.
The rear façade,
overlooking the garden, mirrors the main façade’s simplicity, with
similar window arrangements. The building’s Mannerist style, as noted on
Wikidata, emphasizes geometric clarity over decorative excess. The
palace’s exterior was restored in the 1970s, preserving its structural
integrity and addressing Venice’s environmental challenges, such as
flooding.
Interior
The interior retains the traditional
fontego layout, with a central portego (grand hall) and lateral rooms on
each floor, a design rooted in the 14th-century structure. Key features
include:
Ground Floor: A portico with magazzini (warehouses) and
a raised terrazzo floor to combat acqua alta. A passage leads to a
quadrangular courtyard with a well and an arched entrance to the garden.
Piano Nobile: The main noble floor contains a salone passante (central
hall) flanked by smaller rooms, decorated with neoclassical stucco from
the mid-18th century and frescoes from the early 18th and 19th
centuries. A notable portal, possibly from Longhena’s intervention, adds
architectural interest.
Mezzanines and Second Piano Nobile: Follow
the same tripartite structure, with smaller rooms for residential or
administrative use.
The garden, a rare feature in Venice, was
redesigned in the 19th century with a romantic aesthetic, likely by
Giuseppe Jappelli. It includes a small lawn, pathways, and a well,
offering a tranquil contrast to the urban setting. Restorations by the
Provincia di Venezia in the 20th century preserved the stucco and
frescoes, though the Basadonna’s art collection was lost.
While the palace’s once-vast art collection, including paintings
amassed by the Basadonna family, was dispersed, surviving decorative
elements enhance its cultural value:
Neoclassical Frescoes:
Dating to the 18th and 19th centuries, these adorn the piano nobile,
depicting mythological or allegorical scenes in soft pastel tones,
restored during the 1970s.
Stucco Decorations: Mid-18th-century
stucco work, featuring floral and geometric motifs, frames the ceilings
and walls of the main hall, reflecting the Priuli family’s restoration.
Portal: An ornate doorway in the piano nobile, possibly designed by
Longhena or his workshop, showcases Baroque detailing.
The loss of
the Basadonna collection, which likely included works by Venetian
masters, mirrors the dispersal of Carpaccio’s teleri from the Scuola
degli Albanesi, highlighting the challenges of preserving Venice’s
artistic heritage.
The Palazzo Basadonna Giustinian Recanati reflects Venice’s
mercantile and aristocratic history, embodying the city’s role as a hub
of trade and culture. Its fontego design underscores the integration of
commerce and residence, a hallmark of Venetian patrician life, seen also
in Palazzo Gussoni’s original structure. The Basadonna family’s
ownership linked the palace to Venice’s economic elite, while the
Giustinian Recanati’s donation to the city reflects a tradition of civic
philanthropy, akin to the Fini family’s patronage at San Moisè.
As the Liceo Artistico Statale, the palace continues to shape Venice’s
cultural landscape, training young artists in a setting steeped in
history. Its garden, a rare urban oasis, connects to Venice’s tradition
of private green spaces, as seen in the Scuola degli Albanesi’s
ospedaletto courtyard. The palace’s proximity to San Raffaele Arcangelo
and other Dorsoduro landmarks situates it within a network of artistic
and religious sites, reinforcing the sestiere’s creative identity.
As an active school, the Palazzo Basadonna Giustinian Recanati is not
a standard tourist attraction, but its exterior can be admired from
Fondamenta Priuli or the Rio di San Trovaso. Guided tours, arranged
through the Liceo Artistico or cultural organizations, offer access to
the piano nobile and garden, showcasing the frescoes and stucco work.
Visitors praise the palace’s “elegant simplicity” and “hidden garden,”
though some note the challenge of securing tour access, as reflected in
limited Tripadvisor reviews.
The surrounding Dorsoduro district
enhances the experience, with nearby attractions like:
Gallerie
dell’Accademia (0.3 km): A premier collection of Venetian art.
Ca’
Rezzonico (0.5 km): A museum of 18th-century Venice.
Chiesa di San
Raffaele Arcangelo (0.4 km): A Baroque church with Guardi paintings.
Dining options include Osteria al Bacareto (0.3 km) for traditional
Venetian cuisine.
For a family of four seeking affordable three-star
accommodation, options in Dorsoduro include Hotel Tiziano (0.6 km) or
Hotel Agli Alboretti (0.4 km), bookable via Booking.com or Tripadvisor.
The area’s vaporetto access and walkable streets make it ideal for
exploring.