Education & Enrichment Series | The Miracle of Painting: Titian and the Frari

Presented by Dr. Carlo Corsato, Educator, National Gallery, London and Lecturer, Morley College In 1557, the artist’s friend and biographer Lodovico Dolce presented Titian’s Pesaro Madonna in the Frari with a brief description of the panel and no particular praise for its original location. In 1568, the artist and critic Giorgio Vasari targeted the same church to vent his anti-Venetian feelings: Titian’s Assunta was poorly cared for, and there was little to be seen at all. The Frari’s reputation didn’t seem to improve over the next few decades. In 1648, the painter Carlo Ridolfi allowed Titian’s Pietà only a terse mention in the artist’s third biography and nothing more. Yet, the three works that Titian painted for the church of Frari are today numbered among his greatest masterpieces. How was it possible that early writers and critics were so wrong? What did they miss? Join Dr Carlo Corsato in this lecture and discover how Titian challenged the power of miracle-making devotional images available in the Frari area, shaped his own legend, and ultimately left in the church the best testament of his miraculous talent. Previously recorded on September 23, 2021. For more information about Save Venice’s virtual programming, visit