Palazzo Te (Mantua), 2022 exhibitions
Mantua: the Art of Living (Mantova: l’Arte di vivere) is the title of a series of exhibitions held at Palazzo Te, in Mantua, between March 26, 2022, and January 8, 2023. Mantua: the Art of Living tells about the Gonzaga court ‘lifestyle’ during the Renaissance period. The goal is to recreate the life at the time through the reconstruction of the rooms as they were, the pictorial decorations, tapestries, furnishings, and the special events, such as banquets, that filled the halls with people. A journey into the social and public life of the Gonzaga family in the 16th century, in the magnificent halls of Palazzo Te.
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The program’s first stage, from March 26 to June 26, 2022, was titled ‘The Walls of Wonder. Court Coramas between the Gonzaga and Europe.’ The exhibition, curated by Augusto Morari, presented leather wall hangings, a form of wall decoration that was very much in vogue at the time. In the period of their regency, in fact, the Gonzagas commissioned and purchased corami of all kinds from the most renowned leather processing centers, such as Naples, Bologna, Ferrara, and especially Venice. With corami, they furnished all their residences, mainly Palazzo Te, known for its exquisite decorations.
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The autumn appointment, however, from October 8, 2022, to January 8, 2023, is with the exhibition ‘Giulio Romano. The Power of Things,’ curated by Barbara Furlotti and Guido Rebecchini. The exhibition explores the theme of metal works made to drawings by 16th-century artists, particularly Giulio Romano, but also Michelangelo and Francesco Salviati. The exhibition’s subject is the creative and technical processes that led to the creation of precious objects, the designs of silverware, tapestries, and other pieces in precious metals, bronze and gold, with a focus on weapons and armor. The works come from the British Museum and Victoria&Albert Museum in London and Christ Church Picture Gallery in Oxford. Notable, in particular, is the presence of numerous folios from the Strahov Codex, which belonged to Jacopo Strada and is preserved in Prague, displayed here for the first time after restoration. Finally, prominent among the works is the famous shield of Emperor Charles V of Madrid, on display together with the related drawing by Giulio Romano. In addition, in collaboration with Factum Foundation and Factum Arte, five objects designed by Giulio Romano will be recreated as three-dimensional objects in silver, thanks to digital techniques and highly skilled artisan workshops.
Equally important will be the section devoted to the objects of the prince’s table, monsters, animals and metamorphic human figures, plates, pitchers, and basins in gilded silver, which testify to the imagination of the court artists and the exceptional technical mastery of the master goldsmiths of the time. The selection of drawings highlights how Giulio Romano had found the ideal dimension in decoration to express his most imaginative, playful, and original vein. The partner for the digitalization is Factum Foundation.
Mantua: the Art of Living is promoted by the City of Mantua, produced and organized by Palazzo Te, with the contribution of Fondazione Banca Agricola Mantovana and PIC, in synergy with Mantova city of art and culture. The exhibition design is by Lissoni Associati, while the graphic design is by Lissoni Graphx. Centropalazzote.it
Mantua: the Art of living
Palazzo Te, Mantua
October 8th, 2022, January 8th, 2023
