Milan is gearing up to pay
tribute to Leonardo da Vinci on the 500th anniversary of his
death with a series of events as part of the 'Milano Leonardo
500' programme, which was presented in London on January 18.
Italian Ambassador to the UK Raffaele Trombetta and London
Deputy Mayor for Culture Justine Simons both attended the
presentation.
One of the big events of the programme is the return to Milan
of the Madonna Litta, which the Hermitage Museum in St.
Petersburg is loaning to the Poldi Pezzoli Museum for a special
exhibition.
Leonardo was active in Milan for 20 years, and his work there
left indelible signs, from the canal locks of the Naviglio
Grande to the Last Supper.
The official inauguration of the Milano Leonardo 500
programme will take place on May 15.
Starting on May 16 at Castello Sforzesco, the Sala delle Asse
will reopen after restoration work that began in 2013.
The work uncovered new fragments of monochrome decoration by
Leonardo's own hand, in particular charcoal roots that were a
preparatory drawing of the pergola that depicts 16 mulberry
trees.
The restoration included the laser removal of a dulling layer
known as scialbo, so visitors will now be able to admire new
portions of the drawing that have never been seen before.
There will be dozens of events, including four exhibitions of
drawings from the Codex Atlanticus at the Biblioteca Ambrosiana,
as well as an exhibition titled "The Last Supper After Leonardo"
at the Fondazione Stelline, which includes contemporary artists'
reinterpretations of Leonardo's masterpiece.
However, a main highlight of the programme is the return home
of the Madonna Litta, which was was sold to the Hermitage Museum
in 1865 by Duke Antonio Litta Visconti Arese.
The painting will be on display from November 8, 2019 through
February 10, 2020 at the Poldi Pezzoli Museum as part of the
exhibition "Around Leonardo: The Madonna Litta and the Artist's
Workshop".
The loan of the painting, 30 years since the last time it
visited Milan, was made possible through an exchange - the Poldi
Pezzoli Museum agreed to loan Piero Della Francesca's painting
St. Nicholas of Tolentino to the Hermitage - as well as the
efforts of the Bracco Foundation.
The painting may first make a stop in Venice before coming to
Milan.
The attribution of the painting to Leonardo is controversial,
and there are some who claim it is the work of one of his
students, such as Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio.
In fact, the painting on loan from the Hermitage will go on
display along with a masterpiece by Boltraffio owned by the
Poldi Pezzoli Museum, the Madonna of the Rose, as well as other
works by Boltraffio and other students of Leonardo.
This way, the public can come to know just how much cultural
heritage Leonardo left to the city of Milan, as well as how
attributions can change over time due to new knowledge and
tools.
The presentation of the programme in London, which took place
in a full auditorium, was led by Milan Culture Councillor
Filippo Del Corno together with the president of Fondazione
Stellina, PierCarla Delpiano.
The presentation concluded with a screening of the short film
"Being Leonardo da Vinci" by Massimiliano Finazzer Flory, a
testimony to the fact that paying tribute to Leonardo involves
all art forms.
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