The Pesaro family commissioned this great Baroque palace, initially entrusting it to Baldassarre Longhena in the mid 1600s, though the building was only finished in 1710 by Antonio Gaspari.
This palace is exceptionally large and far bigger than its neighbours when from the Canal Grande.
The Duchess Bevilacqua La Masa, its owner in the 19th Century, gave the palace to the city of Venice for it to be used to exhibit works by young, unknown Venetian artists.

Ca' Pesaro has housed the Museum of Modern Art since 1902, including works of many modern artists who have now become major names: Vedova, De Chirico, Mirò, Grosz, Klee, Klimt, Arp, Calder, Bonnard, Matisse and Kandinsky. The museum also holds works by Italian artists from the 19th and 20th Centuries.
The Museum of Oriental Art is also housed in the same building. This is a rich and unique collection of Chinese and Japanese crafts collected by Count Barbi during his travels in the Far East in the 19th Century.

1600 - 1700 - S. CROCE - rev. 0.1.6