Mountains, castles, caves, trees, and sunrises are just as much the protagonists in the paintings of Giovanni Bellini as are the human figures. Davide Gasparotto, curator of the exhibition Giovanni Bellini: Landscapes of Faith in Renaissance Venice, explores the meaning and function of landscape in the painter’s work.
Saturday, October 14, 2:00 p.m.
Getty Center, Museum Lecture Hall
Giovanni Bellini: Landscapes of Faith in Renaissance Venice
October 10, 2017–January 14, 2018Getty Center
Giovanni Bellini’s evocative landscapes are as much the protagonists of his paintings as are the religious subjects that dominated 15th-century Italian art. One of the most influential painters of the Renaissance, he worked in and around Venice, and while his landscapes are highly metaphorical, they also accurately reflect the region’s topography and natural light. Created for sophisticated patrons, Bellini’s works present characters and symbols from familiar sacred stories, set in a dimension of reality and lived experience to a degree unprecedented in the history of Italian painting.
Generous support for this exhibition was provided by John J. Studzinski CBE, and Maria Hummer-Tuttle and Robert Holmes Tuttle.
RELATED EVENTS
TALKS
How Does Nature Deepen Our Connection to the Sacred?
From pre-Renaissance to modern times, humanity has turned to nature for comfort and connection. What aspects of nature elicit such sentiments? And how does communing with nature affect our relationship with the world around us, and with one another? This panel with Chiyo Ishikawa, curator of European painting and sculpture at the Seattle Art Museum; Christopher (Toby) McLeod, director of the Sacred Land Film Project; and Sara Patterson, professor of theological studies at Hanover College, considers how and why nature draws us closer to the gods. Moderated by documentary filmmaker Jody Hassett Sanchez.
Sunday, November 12, 3:00 p.m.
Getty Center, Harold M. Williams Auditorium
Bellini and the Renaissance Imagination
Keith Christiansen, the John Pope-Hennessy Chairman of European Paintings at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, considers the singular achievements of Giovanni Bellini as a painter of devotional artworks. He explores the critical traditions that underlie the conception of Bellini as a religious artist and how he expanded traditional parameters of the genre through a heightened emphasis on artistic invention and imagination.
Saturday, December 2, 2:00 p.m.
Getty Center: Harold M. Williams Auditorium
COURSE
Drawing from the Masters: Drawing Landscapes
Explore techniques for composing pictorial elements, dividing space and suggesting depth to create dynamic landscape drawings with artist Peter Zokosky. All experience levels welcome. Sign-up begins at 2:30 p.m. at the Information Desk.
Sundays, November 5 and 19, 3:30–5:30 pm
Getty Center: Museum Galleries
TOUR
Curator’s Gallery Tour
Davide Gasparotto, senior curator of paintings, the J. Paul Getty Museum, leads a gallery tour of the exhibition. Meet under the stairs in the Entrance Hall. Sign-up begins at 1:30 p.m. at the Information Desk. Capacity limited.
Wednesdays, November 15 and December 13, 2:30 p.m.
Getty Center, Museum galleries
PUBLICATION

Giovani Bellini: Landscapes of Faith in Renaissance Venice
Edited by Davide Gasparotto
AUDIO TOUR
Pick up a multimedia player free of charge in the Museum Entrance Hall.
GALLERY TEXT
Read and download the gallery text that accompanies this exhibition.
EXHIBITION CHECKLIST
Download the exhibition checklist.
RELATED EXHIBITION
Sacred Landscapes: Nature in Renaissance Manuscripts
October 10, 2017-January 14, 2018, Getty Center
Learn More