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| Casa dei Tre Oci | |
|---|---|
| Name | Casa dei Tre Oci |
| Location | Giudecca |
| Architect | Giuseppe Borsato; Mario de Maria (artist influence) |
| Client | Mario de Maria; Sergio Bini |
| Completion date | 1913 |
| Style | Neo-Gothic architecture; Venetian Gothic |
Casa dei Tre Oci is a landmark palazzo on the Giudecca island facing the Canale della Giudecca in Venice, Italy, notable for its distinctive façade and role in 20th- and 21st-century Venetian cultural life. Conceived as both a family residence and an artistic statement, it became linked to figures of Italian art, photography, and patronage, and has hosted exhibitions, cultural institutions, and high-profile restorations. The building's emblematic three large windows and eye motifs have made it a subject of scholarly discussion in studies of Venetian architecture and Italian modernism.
Commissioned in 1912 by the painter Mario de Maria and completed in 1913, the palazzo was constructed during a period when Venice attracted artists such as Giacomo Balla, Amedeo Modigliani, Gino Severini, and Giorgio de Chirico, situating the building within networks that included the Futurism movement and the broader European avant-garde. Ownership passed through prominent Venetian families and collectors connected to institutions like the Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia and the Fondazione Querini Stampalia, and the casa later became associated with photographers and curators who linked it to international circuits including the Venice Biennale and the Biennale Arte. During the 20th century the palazzo survived wartime pressures that affected Venetian palaces and nearby structures such as the Palazzo Grassi and Ca' Rezzonico, later emerging as a venue for exhibitions tied to archives and private collections belonging to figures like Giovanni Favretto and Mario Giacomelli.
The façade, designed in a revival of Venetian Gothic motifs, features three large lancet windows—resembling eyes—and smaller round apertures, echoing design principles seen in works by Carlo Scarpa and references to Giorgio Vasari's historicizing language. The composition synthesizes elements from Ca' d'Oro, Palazzo Ducale, and the island's industrial waterfront warehouses, combining brickwork with stone tracery and a crenellated roofline that dialogues with San Giorgio Maggiore across the canal. Interiors originally included studios and salons influenced by Liberty style (art nouveau) decorators and furnishings comparable to those in residences curated by collectors such as Baldassare Longhena and patrons allied with the Accademia; spatial arrangements favored natural light for easel painting and photographic practice, aligning the plan with contemporaneous atelier-houses like those of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec in Paris and John Singer Sargent in Florence.
From the late 20th century the palazzo was repurposed as exhibition space hosting shows by photographers and contemporary artists connected to the Venice Biennale, including retrospectives dedicated to practitioners like Gianni Berengo Gardin, Richard Avedon, Diane Arbus, and thematic projects featuring work from the collections of Fondazione Prada, Getty Research Institute, and private archives. Curators associated with institutions such as the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, MAXXI, and Tate Modern staged site-specific installations that exploited the façade's ocular motif, while film festivals and cultural organizations including La Biennale di Venezia (film) and Istituto Italiano di Cultura used the rooms for lectures and screenings. The building served as a hub for photography biennales and became linked to publishers and magazines like Aperture, Camera Work, and exhibition catalogues produced with partners such as Skira and Silvana Editoriale.
The original commissioner, Mario de Maria, a figure in Italian portraiture, established the building's artistic lineage; later residents, collectors, and patrons included photographers and curators whose collections intersected with institutions such as the Museo Correr, Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia, and the Fondazione Benetton Studi Ricerche. Prominent cultural figures who used the palazzo for salons and readings ranged from writers and poets involved with Hermeticism (literature) to visual artists affiliated with Arte Povera and contemporary curators connected to Rem Koolhaas-led projects. Patrons from industrial and banking families with links to UniCredit and Fondazione Cariplo supported exhibitions and restorations, aligning the site with philanthropic networks active across Italy and Europe.
Restoration campaigns adhered to conservation principles advocated by organizations such as ICOMOS, UNESCO directives relevant to the Venice and its Lagoon World Heritage Site, and Italian cultural heritage laws enforced by the Soprintendenza Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio. Interventions addressed masonry consolidation, stone tracery repair, and the stabilization of timber floors, drawing on methodologies employed in the conservation of neighbouring projects like the restoration of Ca' Rezzonico and Palazzo Fortuny. Funding and project oversight involved partnerships with municipal authorities of Venice, private foundations, and European cultural programmes, and conservation reports referenced comparative studies of Venetian façades in publications by scholars from Università Iuav di Venezia and the Politecnico di Milano.
Openings, guided tours, and temporary exhibitions are typically organized in coordination with the Comune di Venezia, Venice museum networks including the Venice Museums (Comune) and international partners such as the British Council and Institut Français. The palazzo has hosted openings timed with the Venice Biennale, book launches connected to publishers like Electa and Contrasto, and public programs—lectures, screenings, and educational workshops—curated with institutions such as the Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia and Università Ca' Foscari Venezia. Visitor access policies, ticketing, and calendar information are managed seasonally to align with the city's cultural calendar and conservation needs.
Category:Buildings and structures in Venice Category:Art museums and galleries in Venice Category:Historic house museums in Italy