One of the places where a little Vivaldi would make perfect background music is the exhibition "Venetian Paintings of the 18th Century," now at the Ueno Royal Museum.
Looking at these paintings, it is easy to imagine the Venetian composer mingling with crowds, watching the regatta or striding across the Rialto Bridge.
Subjects range from masked flirtations at the casino to the mythological fantasies of Tiepolo, grand master of the Italian Rococo. Although many paintings are by forgotten artists, they take us to the heart of this seductive time and place.