The Pinacoteca di Brera ("Brera Art Gallery") is the main public gallery for paintings in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...

, Italy. It contains one of the foremost collections of Italian paintings from the 13th to the 20th century, an outgrowth of the cultural program of the Brera Academy, which shares the site in the

Palazzo Brera Palazzo Brera or Palazzo di Brera is a monumental palace in Milan, in Lombardy in northern Italy. It was a Jesuit college for two hundred years. It now houses several cultural institutions including the Accademia di Brera, the art academy of th ...

History

The Palazzo Brera owes its name to the Germanic ''braida'', indicating a grassy opening in the city structure: compare the ''Bra'' of

Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city municipality in the region and the second largest in nor ...

. The convent on the site passed to the

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

s (1572), then underwent a radical rebuilding by Francesco Maria Richini (1627–28). When the Jesuits were disbanded in 1773, the palazzo remained the seat of the astronomical Observatory and the

Braidense National Library The or Braidense National Library, usually known as the Biblioteca di Brera, is a public library in Milan, in northern Italy. It is one of the largest libraries in Italy. Initially it contained large historical and scientific collections before i ...

founded by the Jesuits. In 1774 the herbarium of the new

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

was added. The buildings were extended to designs by Giuseppe Piermarini, who was appointed professor in the Academy when it was formally founded in 1776, with

Giuseppe Parini Giuseppe Parini (23 May 1729 – 15 August 1799) was an Italian enlightenment satirist and poet of the neoclassic period. Biography Parini (originally spelled Parino) was born in Bosisio (later renamed Bosisio Parini in his honour) in Brian ...

as dean. Piermarini taught at the Academy for 20 years, while he was controller of the city's urbanistic projects, like the public gardens (1787–1788) and piazza Fontana (1780–1782). For the better teaching of architecture, sculpture and the other arts, the Academy initiated by Parini was provided with a collection of casts after the Antique, an essential for inculcating a refined

Neoclassicism Neoclassicism (also spelled Neo-classicism) was a Western cultural movement in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. Neoclassicism ...

in the students. Under Parini's successors, the ''abate'' Carlo Bianconi (1778–1802) and artist

Giuseppe Bossi Giuseppe Bossi (11 August 1777 – 9 November 1815) was an Italian painter, arts administrator and writer on art. He ranks among the foremost figures of Neoclassical culture in Lombardy, along with Ugo Foscolo, Giuseppe Parini, Andrea Appia ...

(1802–1807), the Academy acquired the first paintings of its ''Pinacoteca'' during the reassignment of works of Italian art that characterized the Napoleonic era.

Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael (; or ; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of composition, and visual ...

's '' Sposalizio'' (the ''Marriage of the Virgin'') was the key painting of the early collection, and the Academy increased its cultural scope by taking on associates across the

First French Empire The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental E ...

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

Pietro Benvenuti Pietro Benvenuti (8 January 1769 – 3 February 1844) was an Italian neoclassical painter. Biography Born in Arezzo in Tuscany, he was influenced by the style of Jacques-Louis David. He was a student of the Academy of Fine Arts of Florence, th ...

, Vincenzo Camuccini, Canova, Thorvaldsen and the archaeologist

Ennio Quirino Visconti Ennio Quirino Visconti (November 1, 1751 – February 7, 1818) was an Italian antiquarian and art historian, papal Prefect of Antiquities, and the leading expert of his day in the field of ancient Roman sculpture. His son, Pietro Ercole Visconti, e ...

. In 1805, under Bossi's direction, the series of annual exhibitions was initiated with a system of prizes, a counterpart of the

Paris Salon The Salon (french: Salon), or rarely Paris Salon (French: ''Salon de Paris'' ), beginning in 1667 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial ar ...

s, which served to identify Milan as the cultural capital for contemporary painting in Italy through the 19th century. The Academy's artistic committee, the ''Commissione di Ornato'' exercised a controlling influence on public monuments, a precursor of today's Sopraintendenze Delle Belle Arti. The opening of the new "Reale Pinacoteca" was celebrated on 15 August 1809, Napoleon's birthday. The paintings were displayed in three of the four Napoleonic halls with pavilion vaults. Fundamental paintings by Bellini, Mantegna, Carpaccio,

Titian Tiziano Vecelli or Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italians, Italian (Republic of Venice, Venetian) painter of the Renaissance, considered the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school (art), ...

, Veronese and

Tintoretto Tintoretto ( , , ; born Jacopo Robusti; late September or early October 1518Bernari and de Vecchi 1970, p. 83.31 May 1594) was an Italian painter identified with the Venetian school. His contemporaries both admired and criticized the speed wit ...

had entered the gallery. The

Romantic era Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...

witnessed the triumph of academic history painting, guided at the Academy by Francesco Hayez, and the introduction of the landscape as an acceptable academic genre, inspired by Williamo's Davias and his more known cousin Giuseppe Bisi, while the Academy moved towards becoming an institution for teaching the history of art. In 1882, the Paintings Gallery was separated from the Academy and

Giuseppe Bertini Giuseppe Bertini (1825–1898) was an Italian painter, active in his native Milan. Biography He studied at the Brera Academy under Luigi Sabatelli and Giuseppe Bisi, and in 1845 was awarded the ''Gran premio di pittura dell'Accademia di Brer ...

was appointed as its first director. Bertini was succeeded by Corrado Ricci who, during his direction from 1898-1903, established the Photo Library and systematically reorganized the Picture Gallery according to schools and periods. In 1903, the Pinacoteca opened 19 new rooms that allowed the exhibition of over 100 newly acquired works, such as

Bramante Donato Bramante ( , , ; 1444 – 11 April 1514), born as Donato di Pascuccio d'Antonio and also known as Bramante Lazzari, was an Italian architect and painter. He introduced Renaissance architecture to Milan and the High Renaissance st ...

's frescoes from the Visconti Panigarola house. The art historian and critic Antonio Morassi, who served as director at the Pinacoteca from 1934 to 1939, opened up the collection to 19th century painting and a new exhibition dominated by paintings by Hayez was created. There was also a precursory opening to the purchase of 20th century paintings, such as Guttuso's Portrait of Alberto Moravia and Mafai's "Modelli nello studio". The Brera Observatory hosted the astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli for four decades, and the

Orto Botanico di Brera The Orto Botanico di Brera (5,000 m2) is a botanical garden located behind Palazzo Brera at Via Brera 28 in the center of Milan, Lombardy, Italy, and operated by the Istituto di Fisica Generale Applicata of the University of Milan. It is open w ...

is a historic

located behind the Pinacoteca. In 1939 during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, the works of the Pinacoteca were secured by the director Fernanda Wittgens, while the building suffered serious damage due to the bombings of 1943 (collapsed in twenty-six of the thirty-four sale).Fernanda Wittgens, Pinacoteca di Brera
/ref> The Pinacoteca began its slow resurrection from the ruins in February 1946 thanks to the funding of some historic Milanese families, including the

Bernocchi Bernocchi is an Italian surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Antonio Bernocchi (1859–1930), business magnate and philanthropist * Eraldo Bernocchi (born c. 1963), Italian musician * Piero Bernocchi (born 1947), Italian trade unionis ...

family, and to the work of the architect-designer

Piero Portaluppi Piero Portaluppi (19 March 1888 – 6 July 1967) was an Italian architect. Biography Pietro (known as Piero) Portaluppi was born in Milan, son of the engineer Luisa Gadda e Oreste Portaluppi. He graduated in 1905 from the Istituto Tecnic ...

, Gualtiero Galmanini and the superintendent Fernanda Wittgens. Among the main acquisitions, it is worth mentioning the cycle of detached paintings from the oratory of Mocchirolo (14th century).

Gallery

See List of Paintings of the Pinacoteca of Brera
File:Carlo Crivelli - Madonna della Candeletta - WGA5785.jpg, ''Madonna della Candeletta'' by

Carlo Crivelli Carlo Crivelli ( Venice, c. 1430 – Ascoli Piceno, c. 1495) was an Italian Renaissance painter of conservative Late Gothic decorative sensibility, who spent his early years in the Veneto, where he absorbed influences from the Vivar ...

, File:Andrea Mantegna - The Madonna of the Cherubim - WGA13979.jpg, '' Madonna of the Cherubim'' by Andrea Mantegna, File:Lamentación sobre Cristo muerto, por Andrea Mantegna.jpg, '' Lamentation of Christ'' by Andrea Mantegna, File:Bramantino - Crucifixion - WGA03068.jpg, ''Crucifixion'' by Bramantino, File:MarriageVirgin.jpg, ''

The Marriage of the Virgin The Marriage of the Virgin is the subject in Christian art depicting the marriage of the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph. The marriage is not mentioned in the canonical Gospels but is covered in several apocryphal sources and in later redactions, no ...

'' by

, File:Pieta Bellini.jpg, ''Pieta'' by

Giovanni Bellini Giovanni Bellini (; c. 1430 – 26 November 1516) was an Italian Renaissance painter, probably the best known of the Bellini family of Venetian painters. He was raised in the household of Jacopo Bellini, formerly thought to have been his fath ...

, File:Piero, Pala di Brera.jpg, ''

Holy Conversation In art, a (; plural: ''sacre conversazioni''), meaning holy (or sacred) conversation, is a genre developed in Italian Renaissance painting, with a depiction of the Virgin and Child (the Virgin Mary with the infant Jesus) amidst a group of sain ...

'' by Piero della Francesca, File:El Beso (Pinacoteca de Brera, Milán, 1859).jpg, ''The Kiss'' by Francesco Hayez, File:Guercino Abramo ripudia Agar.jpg, ''Abraham Casting Out Hagar and Ishmael'' by Guercino, File:Bramante-cristo-alla-colonna.jpg, ''Christ at the Column'' by Donato Bramante, File:Guido Cagnacci - The Death of Cleopatra - WGA3757.jpg, ''The Death of Cleopatra'' by Guido Cagnacci File:Angelo Bronzino - Portrait of Andrea Doria as Neptune - WGA3261.jpg, ''Andrea Doria as Neptune'' by

Agnolo Bronzino Agnolo di Cosimo (; 17 November 150323 November 1572), usually known as Bronzino ( it, Il Bronzino ) or Agnolo Bronzino, was an Italian Mannerist painter from Florence. His sobriquet, ''Bronzino'', may refer to his relatively dark skin or reddis ...

, File:St. Lucas altarpiece.jpg, The '' San Luca Altarpiece'' by Andrea Mantegna, 1453 File:Jacopo Tintoretto - Finding of the body of St Mark - Yorck Project.jpg, ''

Finding of the body of St Mark The ''Finding of the Body of Saint Mark'' or ''Discovery of the Body of Saint Mark'' is a painting by Tintoretto. Dated to between 1562 and 1566, it is part of a cycle of paintings of Saint Mark, the patron saint of Venice. It is now held in th ...

'' by

, File:Annibale Carracci - The Samaritan Woman at the Well - WGA4446.jpg, '' The Samaritan Woman at the Well'' by

Annibale Carracci Annibale Carracci (; November 3, 1560 – July 15, 1609) was an Italian painter and instructor, active in Bologna and later in Rome. Along with his brother and cousin, Annibale was one of the progenitors, if not founders of a leading strand of t ...

File:Peter Paul Rubens - Last Supper - WGA20255.jpg, '' Last Supper'' by

Peter Paul Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque tradit ...

, 1630–1631 File:Correggio 002.jpg, ''Adoration of the Magi'' by Correggio, File:Jan de Beer - Triptych - WGA1559.jpg, ''Brera Triptych'' by Jan de Beer, File:Anthony van Dyck - Portrait of a Lady - WGA07402.jpg, ''Portrait of a Lady'' by

Anthony van Dyck Sir Anthony van Dyck (, many variant spellings; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Brabantian Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Southern Netherlands and Italy. The seventh ...

, File:Mattia Preti 004.jpg, ''A Mother Entrusting Her Sons to Christ'' by Mattia Preti, File:Lorenzo Lotto 040.jpg, ''Portrait of Laura da Pola'' by Lorenzo Lotto, File:CaravaggioEmmaus.jpg, alt=, ''Supper at Emmaus'' by

Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of h ...

, 1606 File:Tizian 030.jpg, ''St. Jerome in Wilderness'' by

, File:Titian - Portrait of Count Antonio Porcia - WGA22968.jpg, ''Portrait of Count Antonio Porcia'' by Titian, File:Giovanni bellini, madonna di brera, 1510, 01 adjusted.JPG, ''Madonna and Child Blessing'' by

, File:Jacopo Tintoretto - Sts Helen and Barbara Adoring the Cross - WGA22434.jpg, ''St. Helen and Barbara at the Cross'' by Tintoretto

References

External links

Brera Gallery official website

Accademia di Brera official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pinacoteca Di Brera Tourist attractions in Milan Culture in Milan Art museums and galleries in Milan 1776 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire

History

Gallery

See also

References

Further reading

External links