Villa Manin

It was used as a contemporary art centre and museum for several years and hosted major international exhibitions, and it now also houses currently[update] the Roberto Capucci Foundation’s collection.

Although the original villa was grand, and some of its fabric remains within the existing buildings, the monumental architectural complex that can be seen now is the result of major alterations and additions by Antonio’s descendants.

The Manin family built the palace in Udine and were significant philanthropists, supporting the ecclesiastical hierarchies with significant contributions of and to religious buildings in Venice, such as the construction of the Jesuit church and the chapel of San Giuseppe degli Scalzi, and again in Udine, with the building of the chapel of the same name, the renovation of spaces inside the cathedral and restorations and improvements to San Pietro Martire.

First the Venetian architect Domenico Rossi designed and enclosed the huge square courtyard in front of the villa (1707) and then added the monumental exedra(1718).

In a room in the eastern part of the villa, in 1708 the Parisian Ludovico Dorigny frescoed a domed ceiling with the Triumph of Spring and four smaller surrounding ovals with the allegories of Love, Glory, Wealth, Abundantia.

His painting, in cool and dazzling colours highlights elegant figures on a background of clear skies, with (cherubs and nymphs on clouds going beyond the frame), and follows the conventions of the time.

On the walls, in monochrome on a golden background, there are scenes with Apollo and Mars, Venus and Bacchus, the Judgement of Paris, and Pan and Syrinx between various allegorical figures.

In addition, many of its rooms have been furnished with antique furniture and paintings from the Museum of Udine, including the so-called "Chamber of Napoleon", where the famous emperor slept, and who signed the Treaty of Campoformio at the villa in 1797.

The Villa Manin also contains the permanent exhibitions of a collection of antique carriages in the stables and an extensive armory, with pieces from the Casa della Contadinanza of Udine.

Since 2017,[update] the villa has also housed the collection of the Roberto Capucci Foundation, with a repository consisting of the fashion designer's clothes and thousands of drawings, illustrations, photographs and press articles transferred from Rome.

Events and outdoor concerts have included three episodes of the international TV show Jeux Sans Frontières; the King of Pain Sting tour; R.E.M.