The Apotheosis of Admiral Vettor Pisani

This painting is an oil model for the ceiling painting (1743) for the Palazzo Pisani Moretta (now the Palazzo Giusti Giardino), palace of the powerful aristocratic family of Venice, the Pisani. The composition develops from the central group of Venus and a helmeted figure riding in the two wheeled chariot, representing Venus introducing this man to Jupiter and Mars who are seen above and to the right of Venus. A putto flies in from the top holding a crown, and Neptune the sea god and a river god are placed in the lower left and the lower right of the image. The color harmony of the clear sky and gold edged clouds, the light, floating figures with their skillful sense of foreshortening, and the backlit effects on the reclining figures in the lower section all speak of Tiepolo's superb ceiling decorations. The nimble brushwork seen in the eagle wings and clothing of the helmeted figure is typical of Tiepolo's work and is one of the most appealing aspects of Tiepolo's small format works. This work has traditionally been called Mars and Venus, but in recent years M. Levey has proposed a new theory for the subject. The figure seated on the right of Jupiter holding a shield is clearly Mars, and hence the man seated next to Venus cannot be Mars. The whole image can be seen as representing an apotheosis, in which a person who has excelled during life is carried directly to Heaven upon his death. Levey has suggested that this soldier is the hero of the 14th century Venetian navy, Admiral Vettor Pisani. The commissioner of the ceiling painting, the wealthy Pisani widow Chiara Pisani, had a father-in-law named Vettor and two sons who also shared that name. The most appropriate interpretation of this work seems to be that she chose to honor the past hero by this name in the decoration of the family palace. (Source: Masterpieces of the National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo, 2009, cat. no.48)