The Gallerie dell’Accademia is a museum gallery containing some of the best of Venetian art from the XIV to the XVIII century, including some masterpieces of the Venetian Renaissance by Giovanni Bellini, Carpaccio, Giorgione Veronese, Tintoretto and Titian. It was one of the first institutions to study art restoration.

In 1808 under the legislation of Napoleon, the Academy moved to its current location in the former Canonici Lateranensi monastery complex of the Scuola della Carità, designed initially by Andrea Palladio. It was divided into two parts: a school for the educational purposes for the young painters, and museum/preservation of paintings department. The collections of the Accademia were first opened to the public on 10 August 1817.

In 1894, for the occasion of the first international biennale, the collection was reorganized in chronological or thematic order, with the most important paintings for the period displayed in the main rooms. Before that the paintings were hinged on one side and could be reshuffle in search for better position. The Academy was open for students, with some areas accessible to the public as well. Most paintings were collected  from churches and state palaces.

The  Director of the Academy, Giulio Manieri Elia, gave us a guide tour throughout the gallery. The ground floor has been restored in the last few years, where the academy was located. The educational part is located downstairs, whereas the the museum is located upstars.

The plan of the museum shows the division of the historical part the collection going from 13th till 15th cent. The 16 – 19th century art will be brought downstairs to keep the part of the historical exhibition project by Carlo Scarpa. Unlike his project in the Querini Stampalia Foundation, his work for the Academy was not singular and exemplified at once, but designed at different phases. Some rooms still have original Scarpa projects.