Bartolomeo Cesi. 1556-1629. Pittura del silenzio nell’età dei CarracciCondividi

Prorogata fino al 6 aprile 2026
Dal 22 novembre 2025, tra il Museo Civico Medievale e la Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna, è allestita la prima mostra monografica dedicata al pittore bolognese Bartolomeo Cesi.
Curated by Vera Fortunati and organized as part of the 2025 Jubilee, the exhibition is an initiative of the Municipality of Bologna – through the Musei Civici d’Arte Antica and the Archiginnasio Municipal Library – and the Archdiocese of Bologna. With the participation of the Musei nazionali di Bologna - Direzione regionale musei Emilia-Romagna, these institutions promote the rediscovery of one of the most significant interpreters of Bolognese figurative culture between the 16th and 17th centuries.
“The exhibition dedicated to Bartolomeo Cesi immediately saw the Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna participate with great enthusiasm,” explains Costantino D’Orazio, interim director of the Musei Nazionali di Bologna. “Not only because it allows for the enhancement of several masterpieces within the museum, which the public will be able to admire with even greater attention and awareness, but also because the spirit of collaboration among Bolognese institutions aligns perfectly with the mission of our Institute. A national museum is the guardian of a heritage that reflects the cultural identity of a territory—an identity with which it must always connect and for which it must work, in order to contribute to the social development of its community.”
From the exhibition space of the Museo Civico Medievale, the exhibition continues through the rooms of the Pinacoteca di Bologna, featuring four paintings by Cesi displayed in the Mannerism Room. These include two altarpieces of great importance in the artist's career, the Madonna col Bambino e i santi Giacinto, Agostino e Filippo Benizzi originating from the inner church of the nuns of Sant’Omobono, and theIncarnazione della Vergine in sant’Anna come Immacolata Concezione which was executed, along with the Santi Pietro e Paolo that formed its side panels, for the church of San Francesco
The tour, marked by the exhibition's key visual placed next to the captions, also continues into the Renaissance, Carracci, and Guido Reni galleries—the true heart of the museum, featuring a recently renovated layout. This allows visitors to delve deeper into Bartolomeo Cesi’s artistic training and contemporary artistic developments.
During the exhibition period, the admission fee to the Pinacoteca is reduced to €10.00 for visitors holding a ticket issued by the Museo Civico Medievale.

Throughout the three months of the exhibition, the Pinacoteca di Bologna has scheduled numerous initiatives, including two lectures in the Aula Gnudi, a series of themed guided tours, and family activities, while additional guided tours are organized by Bologna Welcome.