Querini Stampalia: a unique cultural experience in Venice

The Querini Stampalia Foundation is among the oldest Italian cultural institutions. Since 1869 we have promoted “the cult of good studies and useful disciplines”, with a curious gaze and a passion for the future.

Querini Stampalia Foundation

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Since 1869 we have promoted “the cult of good studies and useful disciplines”, with a curious gaze and a passion for the future.

• The Dreamer

— Second Floor

The exhibition is conceived as a series of cinematic sets or stages: entry ignites family obsessions; the library pulses with late-night wisdom; stables clash hoof and blade; the finale unpacks the 1869 will’s eternal gift.

• Nigel Cooke: Bad Habits

Nigel Cooke was the first artist-in-residence at the Fondazione Querini Stampalia. The exhibition, his first solo show in Italy, grows out of this experience and presents new paintings in the very space where they took shape, establishing an ideal continuity between the artist's creative gesture and the viewer's gaze.

• The Invisible Chord. Hans Hartung and Music

Bringing together nearly eighty paintings, documents, and working tools, the exhibition explores the central role of sound in the artist’s plastic and existential universe. From Bach to Pink Floyd, including composers such as Lili Boulanger, a landscape of energies, gestures, and resonances runs throughout his entire body of work.

Architecture
Collection
Library
Library Giovanni
Auditorium

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• Carlo Scarpa Area

Carlo Scarpa’s restoration turned structural necessity into visual poetry: controlled water, sculptural gardens, concrete, and Istrian stone engage with Venice’s aquatic nature, where high tide becomes performance and space invites quiet reflection.

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Architecture
Collection
Library
Library Giovanni
Auditorium

• Carlo Scarpa Area

• Collection

Once the residence of the Querini Stampalia family, it is now one of the most evocative house museums in Europe. It offers a glimpse into daily life in a Venetian palace between the 18th and 19th centuries, through original furnishings, art collections, and historic frescoes.

• Library

The Library holds around 400,000 volumes, both ancient and modern, and has been known for over 150 years as the library of the Venetians. Open also on public holidays, it was established by Count Giovanni Querini, who made it public through the wishes expressed in his will.

• Library Giovanni

Dedicated to Giovanni Querini, the bookshop is a meeting point between museum store and independent bookstore. It offers catalogues, objects, and a carefully curated, accessible selection. A space where books inspire reflection and a deeper understanding of the present.

• Auditorium

Designed by Mario Botta, it is located on the ground floor of the Foundation. With 132 seats, it is among the largest in central Venice. It hosts conferences, concerts, and presentations, and can be connected to adjacent rooms. A space conceived for public and cultural exchange.

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# News

• The Dreamer

“The Dreamer” exhibition —which opens on May 5—is conceived as a series of cinematic sets or stages: entry ignites family obsessions; the library pulses with late-night wisdom; stables clash hoof and blade; the finale unpacks the 1869 will’s eternal gift. Velvet drapes, gaslit flickers, war drums, horse whinnies touch the scars of an era. History not on shelves, but alive: What will you donate to tomorrow?

— Cristiana Collu
(Director of Fondazione Querini Stampalia)

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# News

events

# Event

• Hans Hartung. Two events for the finissage

On the occasion of the finissage of the exhibition “The Invisible Chord. Hans Hartung and Music”, Fondazione Querini Stampalia and Fondation Hartung-Bergman present two events exploring the dialogue between painting and music: a conversation bringing together art history, musicology and archival research, enriched by a musical performance, and a day entirely dedicated to the screening of documentaries.

(8/13.09.26)

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# Eventi

Installation views of Hans Hartung et la musique. The Invisible Chord at Querini Stampalia Foundation, Venice.

# Exhibition

• RHEA. Sull’orlo dell’immagine

On the occasion of the tenth edition of The Venice Glass Week, from 12 to 20 September, Fondazione Querini Stampalia presents RHEA. On the Edge of the Image by Agne Raceviciute, an articulated body of works that, through photography, installation and glass sculpture, explores the ancient practice of alchemy and the tensions that shape the contemporary world.
Free guided tours will be offered, with a fixed starting time at 5 pm, alongside a special talk in the Auditorium focusing on the artist’s research and the dialogue between contemporary art and the tradition of Venetian glassmaking.

(12.09.26 – 20.09.26)

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# Eventi