NATIONAL MUSEUM OF WALES ACQUIRES FRENCESCO GUARDI PAINTING

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF WALES HAS PURCHASED AN IMPORTANT PAINTING BY THE 18th CENTURY ITALIAN ARTIST FRENCESCO GUARDI, 'VIEW OF THE PALAZZO LOREDAN DELL'AMBASCIATORE ON THE GRAND CANAL, VENICE' WAS BOUGHT WITH THE ART FUND'S HELP. THE SIGNIFICANT WORK, ACCEPTED IN LIEU OF INHERITANCE TAX BY H M GOVERNMENT AND ALLOCATED TO AMGUEDDFA CYMRU, IS AN IMPORTANT ADDITION TO THE MUSEUM'S OUTSTANDING 18th CENTURY COLLECTIONS. IT SUPPLEMENTS SEVERAL OTHER DEPICTIONS OF VENICE BY ARTIST SUCH AS CANALETTO, MONET, SICKERT AND WHISTLER. STEPHEN DEUCHAR, DIRECTOR OF THE ART FUND, SAID: 'WE'RE VERY PLEASED TO HAVE GIVEN £20,000 TO NATIONAL MUSEUM OF WALES TO HELP BUY THIS SIGNIFICANT VENETIAN PAINTING. ART FUND MEMBERS HAVE SUPPORTED THE MUSEUM TO MAKE SOME MAJOR ACQUISITIONS IN RECENT YEARS, MOST RECENTLY THE ARRESTING 'WELSH LANDSCAPE WITH TWO WOMEN KNITTING' BY WILLIAM DYCE. WE'RE DELIGHTED THAT THIS BEAUTIFUL 18th CENTURY WORK BY GAURDI IS NOW PART OF WALES' PERMANENT COLLECTION, AND WE THANK OUR MEMBERS FOR THEIR ONGOING SUPPORT.' THE PAINTING WILL UNDERGO MINOR CLEANING BEFORE BEING PUT ON DISPLAY LATER IN THE YEAR.