No Ordinary Casa: The Odoni Collection in Renaissance Venice

In a letter to Andrea Odoni in 1537, the writer Pietro Aretino suggested that Odoni’s home, or casa, was a symbolic extension of Odoni himself. Not only did this eye-catching residence stand out in its location on a peripheral Venetian canal, but so too did the remarkable collection of art, and the person, that it housed. In sixteenth century Venice, this was no ordinary casa, collection or man.

Who was Andrea Odoni?

Andrea Odoni (1488–1545) was a Venetian cittadino and the owner of an impressive collection of paintings and sculpture. In Venice's class system, more rigidly enforced than in other Italian cities at that time, the cittadini were the group below the nobility and above the working-class. Born in Milan to a Venetian mother and a Milanese father, Odoni lived in Venice from the age of two. As an adult, he became the co-head of the dazio dil vin, the office for tax collection on wine. This lucrative position gave him access to some of the privileges enjoyed by Venice's elite, although becoming a member of the nobility itself was an impossibility. Noble status was strictly reserved to those who descended from families listed in the Libro d'Oro (Golden Book), an official directory of Venetian noble linaege. Yet Odoni refused to be confined by such constraints, and forged his own path of social mobility through his art. The inscription on his tomb tells us he was a man 'marked by the splendour of his mind, his liberality, and elegance that surpassed his citizen status'. 

How do we know about Odoni?

The Venetian nobleman and art connoisseur, Marcantonio Michiel (1484–1552), is our main source of information about Andrea Odoni. In the early sixteenth century, Michiel visited and wrote descriptions of private art collections in homes across various Northern Italian cities, including Venice. This was eventually printed and became known as his Notizia d’opere di disegno (Notes on Pictures and Works of Art). In 1532, Michiel visited the home of Andrea Odoni, and his description of the Odoni collection is one of the most detailed accounts in the text. Additionally, a 1555 inventory of Alvise Odoni, Andrea's brother and heir, provides further information about the items in the Odoni collection.

Why Odoni?

Investigating Odoni takes us down a less-visited route into the art scene of early sixteenth century Venice, following the trail of this unconventional collector who made great efforts to be recognised for his dedication to the arts. Unlike the houses and collections of sixteenth century Venetian nobility, some of which are still on display today, neither Odoni's esteemed collection nor his extraordinary residence remain intact. This exhibition provides a unique opportunity to revisit them, and to look closely at a figure who overcame social barriers in order to become a more visible member of Venetian society. By piecing together the visual and descriptive information that survives, the self-image that Andrea Odoni so boldly put on display comes into focus. Beyond the man, we learn more about his place within, and influence upon, the artistic circles of his time.