Renaissance Venice was a multicultural metropolis at the intersection of trade routes linking Europe to the Islamic World, with pigments, spices, and luxury objects flowing through the city. This fall, the Gardiner invites visitors to discover the lives of Venetians across the social spectrum, from tradespeople to wealthy elites. Lush, theatrical sets and digital animations will transport visitors to the Floating City. Step into the workshop of the potter-entrepreneur and uncover a counter-narrative about the experiences of Renaissance women.

Renaissance Venice: Life and Luxury at the Crossroads recreates a sensory world of more than 110 objects, ranging from Chinese porcelain and Islamic metalware to Venetian textiles and glass. Ceramics from the Gardiner’s collection are displayed alongside objects from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Victoria and Albert Museum, The Detroit Institute of Arts, The Corning Museum of Glass, The Royal Ontario Museum, the Aga Khan Museum, the Art Gallery of Ontario, and the Bata Shoe Museum, among other lending institutions and private collections.

At the forefront is the story of Venice’s maiolica industry as it developed throughout the 1500s, and the role of ceramics in encapsulating cultural exchanges and intersections. A type of tin-glazed earthenware, maiolica provides a unique point of entry into the city’s cultural and material world, shaped by migration and diversity, with deep resonance in our contemporary society.

A global city in constant movement, Renaissance Venice parallels our own lives in many ways. Works by contemporary artists Lindsay Montgomery, Dorie Millerson, and Nadia Myre expand upon the connections between the present and the legacies of the past. Each brings a feminist critique that focuses, respectively, on story-telling traditions, domestic labour and exploitation, and Venice’s symbolic connection to the Americas and Indigenous Peoples through printed publications.

Renaissance Venice: Life and Luxury at the Crossroads runs from October 14, 2021 to January 9, 2022. Admission is free for Gardiner Friends and Get Acquainted pass holders, students with valid ID, and visitors aged 18 and under.