Titian continues to be a source of wonder, exploration, and knowledge; the genius loci of his homeland, Cadore; and the key to understanding the golden age of Renaissance art in the Venetian Republic and across Europe. Since its inception, the Fondazione Centro Studi Tiziano e Cadore has played a fundamental role in supporting and promoting studies and research on the art and figure of the Master, as well as the many connections with a region rich in cultural and scenic beauty, with the aim of developing a sustainable and engaging way to experience and discover it. This has been achieved through an international scientific committee, a specialized library, the publications and restorations it has promoted, and, above all, through the Titian Summer: a rich program of meetings and conferences with prestigious scholars, concerts, and experiential visits to significant and iconic art sites, which for over twenty years has filled the summer days with content and activities in Titian’s hometowns and, since last year, in locations across the Veneto region linked to renowned artistic figures in dialogue with the Cadore-born painter, such as Giorgione, Veronese, Tintoretto, Palladio, and Canova: from the mountains of the Belluno area to the Venetian Pre-Alps, from the Venetian mainland to the Treviso hills, all the way to the Euganean Hills.
From June 19 through September 26, 2026, there will be over 35 events open to the public as part of the 22nd edition of the “Estate Tizianesca,” which this year is intertwined with the celebrations marking the 450th anniversary of the artist’s death, “Titianus Cadorinus 1576–2026,” being held in Pieve di Cadore: These celebrations will culminate in the major exhibition curated by Bernard Aikema and Thomas Dalla Costa, scheduled from July 18 to October 18, 2026, at the Palazzo della Magnifica Comunità di Cadore, marking the conclusion of the exhibition project on “Titian and the Landscape” launched at the beginning of the year.
The Titian Summer, organized by the Centro Studi Tiziano e Cadore in collaboration with the Municipality of Pieve and the Magnifica Comunità, and made possible with the support of the Treviso Chamber of Commerce – Belluno Dolomiti, in partnership with Confindustria Belluno Dolomiti, under the patronage of the UNESCO Dolomites Foundation, and in partnership with the Veneto Region–ReteEventi, the Province of Belluno, the Terre Natie-Tiziano Canova & Giorgione project, and the Dolomiti Symphonia Orchestra, with the support of BIM–Comuni del Piave and Cortina Banca–Credito Cooperativo Italiano, and in collaboration with Villaggio Globale International, will thus serve as an echo of this valuable event and as a powerful connector of artistic and cultural visions and reflections that set out from Titian’s birthplace to spread throughout the Veneto region and return here: the epicenter and heart of a vision in which territories, art, cultural institutions, and landscapes intertwine, aiming to enhance smaller towns and mountain communities to promote mindful and responsible tourism.
The program, developed by Maria Giovanna Coletti, president of the Foundation, includes “Sguardi su Tiziano e Dintorni,” “Mattinate alla Casa dell’Oratore,” “Promenade in Villa tra Arte e Natura,” and “Concerti,” the program developed by Maria Giovanna Coletti, president of the Foundation, will kick off on June 19 at 6:30 p.m. at Palazzo Giacomelli in Treviso, where Maria Agense Chiari Moretto Wiel, a leading scholar of 16th-century Venice and professor of Venetian art history at the Venice campus of Wake Forest University, will join Paolo Barbisan in exploring the theme of Titian’s Annunciation— “Two Annunciations, One Master: Titian Between Treviso and Venice”—recalling the complex genesis revealed by the recent restoration of Titian’s painting at the Scuola Grande di San Rocco, now fully restored to Titian’s original hand and thus comparable to the work housed in Treviso Cathedral.
In total, there will be 22 lectures and discussions on art featuring experts who, weaving together descriptions and interesting facts, will present the latest research, often revealing previously unpublished studies and insights into works, artists, periods, and sites; 20 scholars will be involved, along with 6 “Virgilio” guides—owners or expert connoisseurs of historic residences and villas opened to the public; 8 concerts; 20 cities and towns involved in the project—from Pieve di Cadore itself to Vigo, Vinigo, Tai, San Vito, and Nebbiù di Cadore; from Belluno, Cortina d’Ampezzo, Feltre, Lentiai, Modolo, Vittorio Veneto, Agordo, and Candide–Comelico Superiore to Treviso, Castelfranco Veneto, Possagno, Susegana, Mira, and Galzignano Terme—and 25 cultural sites that will serve as venues or be the focus of meetings or visits: from the Church of St. John the Baptist in Vinigo di Cadore to the Teatro Accademico in Castelfranco Veneto, from Santa Maria Assunta in Lentiai to the Gypsoteca Canova Museum in Possagno, from the Diocesan Museum in Feltre to Villa Crotta de’ Manzoni in Agordo.
THE PROGRAMME
There were numerous events and fascinating topics covered in the sessions that are worth highlighting: from Gianluca Poldi’s unpublished research on part of the eastern frieze of the Casa di Marta in Castelfranco Veneto in relation to the drawings underlying Giorgione’s paintings—which allow us to trace strong connections between the painter’s early works from before 1500, whether attributed to him or debated between the Master of Castelfranco and Sebastiano del Piombo (June 22) to the theme of Purgatory in figurative art from the Council of Trent to the fall of the Venetian Republic, which Enrica Folin will discuss (August 8), starting with the iconography of the Good Death and the Souls in Purgatory found in the Church of the Madonna della Difesa in Vigo di Cadore and in the altarpieces painted by Antonio Lazzarini in the Church of San Martino in Valle di Cadore.
Alessandra Geromel will speak on Embroidery and Workshops in 16th-Century Venice (July 3), Francesco di Mauro will explore the Symbolic Meaning of Plants in 15th-Century Venice (August 14), while we will discover the Erotic Paintings of Lavinia Fontana, a Bolognese painter active between the 16th and 17th centuries, with Enrico Maria Dal Pozzolo (August 6); through to the walks in Cadore by the American painter Eugene Benson in search of the secret of Titian’s landscapes with Rossella Momoli Zorzi (July 18), the relationship between polyptychs and Titian analyzed by Paolo Barbisan (July 19), and the three sculptural monuments dedicated to the Titian myth: from Canova to Dal Zotto, which will be illustrated by Elena Catra (September 12).
But among the featured speakers not to be missed are the sessions with Stefania Mason, president of the scientific committee of the Fondazione Centro Studi Tiziano e Cadore, as well as Bernard Aikema, Melissa Conn, Thomas Dalla Costa, Sebastiano Giordano, Nona Kudis, Gabriele Matino, Vittorio Pajusco, and Valentina Sapienza.
The villa tours will offer another way to discover and experience the region, as you are welcomed and guided on a journey to explore residences of exceptional architectural, historical, and artistic significance, and integral to the local landscape, by the owners who still live there or by some of the foremost experts on these magical places: on June 20 at Villa Crotta de’ Manzoni (Agordo) with Luca De’ Manzoni Matteucci, on July 9 at the Castle of San Salvatore in Susegana (Treviso) with Isabella Collalto Dem Croy, on July 26 at Villa di Modolo (Belluno) with Francesco Miari Fulcis, and on August 21 at Palazzo Monti Giacobbi in Candide – Comelico Superiore with Alvise Giacobbi, on September 5 at the Garden and Villa of Valsanzibio (Galzignano Terme) with Armando Pizzoni Ardemani, and on September 24 at Villa Malcontenta (Mira) accompanied by Ferigo Foscari Widmann Rezzonico.
And then, of course, there are the evenings dedicated to classical music, featuring refined chamber concerts in a program under the artistic direction of Maestro Delio Cassetta, conductor of the Dolomiti Symphonia Orchestra.
