The NOMA — or New Orleans Museum of Art — is overjoyed to be presenting an exhibition of 18th-century works through May that will undoubtedly seduce your visual senses.
Have you ever heard of the Italian festival known as Carnival? Celebrated in winter in Italy, Carnival was first recorded in 1268 as a countercultural festival in rejection of laws prohibiting the wearing of masks. Today, the event has become a cultural staple, especially for the city of Venice, which celebrates Carnival with gondola finials, costumes, puppet theaters, and, of course, masquerade balls.
The New Orleans Museum of Art is currently showcasing a number of 18th-century Venetian artworks that depict Carnival ceremonies, fashion, and more. Titled “A Life of Seduction: Venice in the 1700s,” the exhibition “examines this culture of display and sensuality through four primary themes: A City that Lives on Water, the Celebration of Power, Aristocratic Life in Town and Country, and the City as Theater” the museum writes. “The works in the exhibition are drawn primarily from Venetian and other Italian collections, with important additions from American institutions. Five extraordinary paintings, never before seen in the United States, introduce the themes of the exhibition. Recently attributed to Joseph Heintz the Younger (1600-1678), these detailed works illuminate the richness of Venetian culture and society, providing insight into the public life of Venetians, and intimate views of political and aristocratic life.”
“A Life of Seduction” will be on view through May 21. To learn more, visit the NOMA.
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