The Museo Poldi Pezzoli is an
art museum
An art museum or art gallery is a building or space for the display of art, usually from the museum's own Collection (artwork), collection. It might be in public or private ownership and may be accessible to all or have restrictions in place. A ...
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 h ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
. It is located near the
Teatro alla Scala
La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...
, on Via Manzoni 12.
The museum was originated in the 19th century as a private collection of
Gian Giacomo Poldi Pezzoli (1822–1879)
and his mother, Rosa Trivulzio, of the family of the
condottiero
''Condottieri'' (; singular ''condottiero'' or ''condottiere'') were Italian captains in command of mercenary companies during the Middle Ages and of multinational armies during the early modern period. They notably served popes and other Europe ...
Gian Giacomo Trivulzio
Gian Giacomo Trivulzio (1440 or 1441 – December 5, 1518) was an Italian aristocrat and '' condottiero'' who held several military commands during the Italian Wars.
Biography
Trivulzio was born in Milan, where he studied, among others, w ...
. Many of the rooms in the palace were redecorated starting in 1846, a commissions entrusted to
Luigi Scrosati 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 Brera ...
. Individual rooms were often decorated and furnished to match the paintings hung on the walls. The architect
Simone Cantoni
Simone Cantoni (Muggio, Switzerland , 1736- Gorgonzœla, Milan, Italy , 3 March 1818) was a Swiss architect of the Neoclassical period, active mainly in Northern Italy.
Biography
His father was his first mentor, but sent him as a young man to R ...
(1736–1818) rebuilt the palazzo in its present
Neoclassical style with an English-style interior garden. In 1850–1853, Poldi Pezzoli commissioned the architect Giuseppe Balzaretto to refurbish his apartment.
Museum website
Pezzoli in his testament left the house and contents to the Brera Academy
The Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera ("academy of fine arts of Brera"), also known as the or Brera Academy, is a state-run tertiary public academy of fine arts in Milan, Italy. It shares its history, and its main building, with the Pinacoteca di ...
. Giuseppe Bertini, director of the Academy, opened the museum on 25 April 1881. 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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the palazzo suffered severe damage, but the artworks had been placed in safe storage. The museum was reopened in 1951 after reconstruction.
The museum is notable for its broad collection of Northern Italian and Netherlandish/Flemish artists. The exhibition includes weaponry, glassworks, ceramics, jewelry, and furnishings.
Collection: Italian painters
Works on display include Italian painters such as:
Northern European painters
Painters in the collection include: Breughel the younger; Cranach Cranach is a German-language surname. Notable people with the surname include:
*Augustin Cranach (1554–1595), German painter
*Hans Cranach (c. 1513–1537), German painter
*Lucas Cranach the Elder (c. 1472–1553), German artist
*Lucas Cranach th ...
; Goltzius; James Baker Pyne
James Baker Pyne (5 December 1800 – 29 July 1870) was an English landscape painter who became a successful follower of Turner, after having been in his earlier years a member of the Bristol School of artists and a follower of Francis Dan ...
; Thomas Shotter Boys; Sutterman; Teniers the younger; Jacob Toorenvliet
Jacob Toorenvliet (1640–1719) was a Dutch Golden Age painter of genre works.
Biography
Toorenvliet was born in Leiden, to Abraham Toorenvliet (1620–1692), a glass painter and drawing instructor. The younger Toorenvliet first studied art wit ...
; Pierre Tetar van Elven; Mathijs Van Hellemont; Jan Van der Meer II; Willem Van Mieris
Willem van Mieris (3 June 166226 January 1747) was an 18th-century painter from the Northern Netherlands.
Biography
Willem van Mieris was a painter, sculptor and etcher active in Leiden. He was born in Leiden and studied under his father Frans ...
; ; Nicolaus Alexander Mair Von Landshut, (Mair Landshut); and Cornelis de Wael
Cornelis de Wael (Antwerp, 1592 – Rome, 1667) was a Southern Netherlands, Flemish painter, engraver and merchant who was primarily active in Genoa in Italy. He is known for his genre paintings, battle scenes, history paintings and still lifes ...
.
Examples of the collection
File:Piero Pollaiuolo 001.jpg, Antonio del Pollaiuolo, '' Portrait of a Young Woman''
File:Sandro Botticelli 015.jpg, Sandro Botticelli, '' Lamentation over the Dead Christ''
Ghyas el Din Jami - Tabriz (?) - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Hunting'', Fine Persian Carpet
A Persian carpet ( fa, فرش ایرانی, translit=farš-e irâni ) or Persian rug ( fa, قالی ایرانی, translit=qâli-ye irâni ),Savory, R., ''Carpets'',(Encyclopaedia Iranica); accessed January 30, 2007. also known as Iranian ...
made by Ghyath ud-Din Jami, Wool, cotton and silk
References
External links
*
Virtual tour of the Museo Poldi Pezzoli
provided by Google Arts & Culture
Google Arts & Culture (formerly Google Art Project) is an online platform of high-resolution images and videos of artworks and cultural artifacts from partner cultural organizations throughout the world.
It utilizes high-resolution image technol ...
*
{{Authority control
Art museums and galleries in Milan
Tourist attractions in Milan