Venice, restoration of Titian's Assumption in the Basilica dei Frari completed

After four years, two of maintenance, 9,000 hours of work and about 600,000 euros of investment, the restoration of the Assumption of the Basilica dei Frari in Venice, a masterpiece by Titian, has been completed. The work was financed by Save Venice and involved securing the monumental painting, the stone frame and the wooden altarpiece. The last of the interventions on the work was carried out by three restorers who worked on site: Giulio Bono on the painting, Egidio Arlango on the lapidary frame and Roberto Saccuman on the wooden altarpiece.

Among the problems faced was that of disassembling the organ, as vibrations from the nearby instrument were also putting Titian’s masterpiece at risk.

Some new features emerged from the restoration, including two angels in the pendentives on either side of the stone frame. The director of works, Giulio Manieri Elia, pointed out that “there had already been four interventions, in 1816, 1906, 1964 and 1974, as well as older ones. New generations of milder solvents were used. The central element was the color; past interventions had been equalized with a patina that, when removed, enhanced the red in its different declinations, bringing out the ’almost pink’ of the cassock. The chromatic richness made it possible to find a correct spatiality, which gave light back to the painting.”

Another risk to the work was woodworms: “The constant problem of a wooden panel,” commented the director; “they damage the panel that had been reclaimed both in 1964 and 1974. From the organ they were spreading to the altarpiece. That’s why it was decided to disassemble it, as well as the vibration problem.”

“We wanted to intervene both on the painting and on the altarpiece and altar to ensure the balance between the parts that make up the work,” explained the Superintendent of Fine Arts, Emanuela Carpani, who praised the work of the team composed of “trusted technicians, of absolute level, starting with the director of works.”

Photo: Save Venice

Venice, restoration of Titian's Assumption in the Basilica dei Frari completed

Warning: the translation into English of the original Italian article was created using automatic tools. We undertake to review all articles, but we do not guarantee the total absence of inaccuracies in the translation due to the program. You can find the original by clicking on the ITA button. If you find any mistake,please contact us.