Brera Gallery. Pinacoteca Brera: outstanding collections of Italian paintings

In the historical center of Milan there is a special, “bohemian” quarter, which the city residents themselves call Milan’s Montmartre. It is called Brera and is bounded by the streets Mercato, Ponte Vetero, Monte di Pieta, Dei Giardini, Fatebenefratelli, Pontaccio. At night, this is the busiest place in the city, but during the day, tourists can enjoy antique and art shops, fortune-telling salons, and small street markets. In the bustle and excitement of the celebration of life, it is easy to pass by the spiritual center of this quarter - the Brera Pinacoteca. But this will be a big omission on your part, because there is so much to see there.

Royal whim and tutorial

In this quarter, on the street of the same name (Via Brera), there is a palace from the late 16th century. A completely standard two-story palazzo in the Italian secento style with a courtyard (patio) decorated with statues, overlooked by covered galleries with a number of arcades supported by Doric columns. Since the 18th century, the Milan Academy of Fine Arts has been located on the ground floor of this palace. After its opening, Maria Theresa of Austria, one of the great royalty of Europe, gave its students a royal gift - she ordered the organization of an art gallery (Pinacotheque) on the second floor of the palazzo. At first it was a luxurious teaching aid, the collection of which was constantly replenished. Since 1809, the collection of paintings by the great masters of Europe can be admired by everyone.

Everything on the shelves

The fact that this gallery was originally a teaching tool was also reflected in its organization. In thirty-eight halls, everything is “laid out on the shelves”: the criteria are chronology and the school of painting.

This may seem boring to some, but the main theme of the collection of paintings is biblical and Christian motifs. You can see different artistic interpretations of the acts of saints, apostles, scenes from the life of the Madonna and Christ. For example, Raphael’s vision of the moment of Christ’s mother getting married, captured in the painting “The Betrothal of the Virgin Mary.”

However, your disappointment at the seeming narrowness of the topic will be premature. Among the paintings of Rembrandt, Goya, Vandyck and other masters of painting, you can see very piquant and even partly erotic scenes like the painting “The Kiss” by Francesco Aez or “The Death of Cleopatra” by Guido Chianchi. Pietro Longhi’s eerie-sweet painting “Toothbuster” literally attracts the eye. There are also landscapes by Bernardo Belotto, which, due to the scrupulous accuracy of the depiction of details, can well be considered historical documents.

Room X, which contains paintings by masters of the 20th century, stands out somewhat from the general order. The entire last, 38th room, is dedicated to portraits.

The journey through the halls of the Brera Pinacoteca can be long, so for the comfort of visitors, soft chairs are placed in the halls. But photography and video shooting in its halls is strictly prohibited.

Around and around

Everything you want to buy as a souvenir of the Brera Pinacoteca, as well as albums with reproductions of paintings by great masters, is in the room located immediately behind the last hall. There is also an exhibition of medieval art there.

As you exit the gallery, you will definitely notice the restoration workshop, one of the walls of which is specially made entirely of glass. You can watch the painstaking work of craftsmen restoring ancient paintings completely free of charge, and the spectacle is very exciting.

If you are a fan of vintage items and retro style, then you will love the salon next to the gallery. They sell original handmade items there. You can purchase suits, accessories, dresses, any outerwear in the style of the century of the past and the century before, and also silk stoles.

It is better to satisfy your hunger in the student cafe, located in the basement of the Pinakothek. You can get there from the courtyard. The food there is simple, but tasty and cheap.

Official site

The Pinakothek has its own website on the Internet: www.brera.beniculturali.it. Of course, the materials are presented in Italian, but understanding the sections of the site is not difficult, especially since most of them are beautifully illustrated. The following useful sections are worth attention:

• information (contact details and job information are posted);
• story;
• collections;
• galleries (contains high-definition photographs of paintings);
• virtual map of the Pinakothek (interesting places and paintings in each room are indicated).

How to visit the Brera Pinacoteca

Address: The Pinacoteca is located at number 28 at the intersection of Via Brera and Via Fiori Oscuri. The entrance to the courtyard is through an inconspicuous passage between the houses.

Nearest stations metro to the Brera quarter - Montenapoleone (line 3) and Lanza (line 2). It will take you to the gallery bus No. 61 and trams № 27, 14, 12.

Purchasing tickets and opening hours

The gallery is open to the public on all days of the week except Mondays. from 8:30 am to 19:30 pm. Weekends occur on Christmas Eve (December 25), the first day of the new year and, oddly enough, May 1. Tickets are on sale until 18:40. They cost 10 euros. An audio guide broadcasting in Russian, English, German, Italian, Spanish and French costs 5 euros. Free entry every first Sunday of the month.

In contact with

Art museums in Italy amaze with their diversity and splendor. Every tourist in any city in the country will see a collection of art treasures that any other country can envy: Florence - luxurious palaces, Rome - religious artifacts, Milan - scientific delights, and every museum or gallery is worthy of a visit.

Beautiful quarter of Milan

One of the famous museums in Italy, and in Milan in particular, is the Brera Pinacoteca, which is located in the quarter of the same name. The name comes from the Italian word "braida" or "brera", which means "land cleared of trees". Once upon a time, this area was not part of the city, but was located on the border with it, but now this quarter is called the “Milan Montmartre” because of its unique bohemian atmosphere, since in addition to the Pinacothèque, the Academy of Fine Arts is also located here. In this area you can see an astronomical observatory, a botanical garden, and in the evening and at night young people gather, since Brera is a popular nightlife area in Milan.

Brera Art Gallery

The ancient Greeks had rooms where they stored works of art, including various clay tables, paintings written on boards, and other painted works. Such storage facilities were called pinacothecae, which were later used by the Romans. Today they are called pinacotecas, of which there are only seven at present, and one of them is the Pinacoteca de Brera.

It is located in the palace, and at the entrance every tourist is greeted by a sculpture of Napoleon, and along the entire perimeter the courtyard is decorated with arched passages. The gallery is considered one of the most visited museums in Italy, and is ranked 20th in popularity.

The Pinakothek has 38 halls with paintings, which, for the convenience of visitors, are arranged in chronological order and divided by painting school. One of the halls is dedicated to the art of the 20th century.

Initially, there was a base for students, and only in 1882 an art gallery appeared, very popular among students of the Academy of Fine Arts.

Pinacoteca Brera: paintings

More than 30 rooms contain works by famous people from different eras. In the halls you can find works by Caravaggio, Goya, Tintoretto, and Rembrandt. The paintings are distributed throughout the gallery and divided into eras, but there are some rooms that are dedicated to just one artist who brought fame to Italy.

A special feature of the gallery is that it contains not only paintings, but also frescoes belonging to the 14th-16th centuries. They are exhibited in special halls, where they tried to recreate the model of the destroyed buildings in which the frescoes were located.

The most famous and major works are considered to be “The Dead Christ” (Mantegna), created at the beginning of the 16th century, “The Miracle of St. Mark” (Tintoretto), “Portrait of Mois Kisling” (Modigliani), “The Betrothal of the Virgin Mary” (Raphael) . The paintings belonging to the gallery's collection are the most significant among the collections of Italian painting. The collection was collected over many years, and it arose not thanks to donations from aristocrats, but as a result of progressive cultural policies, where works were purchased specifically to improve the quality of education.

Gallery collection

The Pinacoteca Brera in Milan stores the most valuable paintings by Italian masters, and already in the first room there are images of Jesus Christ created by different artists at different times: Rosso, Marino, Modigliani and other authors.

Further, in the following rooms, Italian painting of the 13-16 centuries is presented, and the works of such masters as Giovanni de Milano. The 15th and 16th centuries are in the 5th and 6th rooms, and the most famous work is the Lamentation of Christ with Mary and John, painted by Giovanni Bellini.

Works from the Venetian period can be seen in rooms 7, 8, 9 and 14, where paintings by Lotto, Tintoretto, Basanno and others are presented.

Works from the Lombardy period are located in rooms 15 and 19, where portraits, landscapes and frescoes that were collected in various monasteries are presented.

The work of the province of Emilia, the center of which is Bologna, is dedicated separately. These works can be found in rooms 20, 22 and 23. 21 rooms are works from the 15th century, and in room 24 there are Piero della Francesca and Raphael. The paintings on display here date back to the Renaissance (15th-16th centuries).

27 and 28 halls - paintings of central Italy, 30 halls - Lombard painting of the 17th century, 31, 32 and 33 halls - these are works of masters from the Netherlands, 34 halls - icons of the 18th century, 35 and 36 - Venetian painting of the 18th century, 37 and 38 halls - 19th century painting.

Caravaggio Hall

Hall number 29 is entirely devoted to the works of the great Italian master - Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merisi), who was the founder of realism and the greatest master of the Baroque in the 17th century. He was an outstanding artist who transferred all his works directly to canvas, and not a single drawing or sketch was found.

The Pinacoteca de Brera presents the works of the master and his students, and the most famous painting in the gallery is “The Supper at Emmaus” from 1605 - 1606. It depicts the climactic moment when Christ appeared to the two disciples on the third day after the crucifixion.

Caravaggio painted two paintings of the same name, but the first was painted in 1602, and today is kept in the National Gallery in London. The painting presented in Milan has a simpler composition, no bright colors are used, people’s gestures are restrained, and the artist’s style is darker compared to previous works.

Pinakothek 21st century

One of the most popular museums opens its doors every day for visitors to get acquainted with the art of different eras of Italian masters. Students constantly come here to look at paintings and study the eras and techniques of artists.

In addition to the gallery, there is a library of contemporary art, where more than 25 thousand volumes are collected. The library is visited by students, teachers, and also hosts extracurricular courses that are open to everyone, various competitions, events and projects, information about which can be obtained on the museum’s website.

Pinacoteca Brera: address and cost

In the city zone 1, in the quarter of the same name, the Pinakothek is located at via Brera 28. In order to get to the gallery, you need to purchase a ticket, the cost of which is 10 euros, and for a preferential category of citizens - 7 euros. Anyone can purchase an audio guide for a fee of 5 euros, which will help guide the tour. For more information, please visit the Pinakothek website.

Pinacoteca di Brera is the largest and most famous art gallery in Milan. Opened in 1809, it still attracts all art lovers like a magnet.
The collection of paintings includes canvases by European artists of the 15th-17th centuries and masterpieces of masters of Italian painting of the 14th-19th centuries: Modigliani, Bramante, Tintoretto and others.

The Pinacoteca Brera occupies 38 rooms in a Baroque palazzo built at the end of the 16th century. The Milan Academy of Fine Arts (Accademia di Belle Arti Milano) is located in the same building - it is located on the ground floor. It was precisely for the students of the Academy that Queen Maria Teresa of Austria at the end of the 18th century ordered the establishment of an art gallery in Milan.

Paintings

Paintings in the halls are placed according to two principles:

• chronologically;
• by belonging to one of the schools of painting (Lombard, Venetian or Tuscan).

An exception to both principles is Hall X: it contains works by twentieth-century masters. The last, XXXVIII room of the exhibition is entirely dedicated to portraits by various masters of painting.

The real gem of the Brera Gallery in Milan is Raphael’s painting “The Betrothal of the Virgin Mary” (Lo sposalizio della Vergine).

But besides this, the Pinakothek’s collection contains many genuine masterpieces: “Supper at Emmaus” by Caravaggio, “The Miracle of St. Mark” by Tintoretto, “The Altarpiece of Montefeltro” by Pietro della Francesca, etc. Among European artists, the gallery presents works by El Greco, Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Goya and many others.

The main theme of the collection is Christianity, the life of the Madonna and Christ, the crucifixion, and the acts of the saints and apostles.

Each room has soft armchairs for visitors, where they can relax and admire the true masterpieces.

However, you are not allowed to take photographs or make videos here. At the end of each hall there are information desks with descriptions of the paintings in two languages ​​- English and Italian. You can take an audio guide (for a fee), but also only in Italian and English. At the gallery entrance you can buy colorful, beautifully printed brochures that briefly describe the paintings and provide additional information.

What else to see?

A visit to Via Brera in Milan is worth visiting not only for the sake of visiting the art gallery of the same name. There are several other interesting objects in the same building and nearby.

After leaving the last hall of the museum, you can immediately go into the room where there is a rather extensive and interesting exhibition of medieval art.

Here you can also buy art albums, literature dedicated to the Brera Pinacoteca itself, great artists and painting as a separate art form.

At the exit from the gallery there is a small restoration workshop, separated from the main room by glass walls. Through the glass you can watch how ancient paintings are restored - a truly breathtaking, unique spectacle.

Next to the building where the Brera Pinacoteca is located, there is a small designer salon where you can buy various interesting things: handmade stoles, outerwear, dresses, suits and accessories in the now fashionable retro style.

If you get tired and hungry during your tour of the art halls, numerous cafes are open on the terrace of the Pinakothek building during the warm months of the year. Their prices, however, are not the most affordable. Those who want to relax and have a snack on a budget can go down to the small basement located in the courtyard: there is a student cafe there. It does not offer any special culinary delights, but the coffee, sweets and snacks they serve are very good.

Address, opening hours

The Pinacoteca Brera is located in Milan at via Brera 28 in the quarter of the same name. The building is difficult to notice from the street: a narrow passage between neighboring houses leads to it, and behind them opens a beautiful palazzo courtyard with elegant sculptures and marble stairs.

Pinacoteca Brera is open every day from 8:30 to 19:15, with the exception of public holidays - Monday, January 1, May 1, December 25. When planning your visit, please note that ticket sales end at 18:40. The entrance ticket costs 10 euros, reduced price - 7 euros, for an additional fee of 5 euros, you can purchase an audio guide in Italian, English, French, Spanish.

The Pinakothek's official website will help you find out the latest information about the gallery's opening hours and ticket prices: www.brera.beniculturali.it.

How to get there

metro: line 2 (Lanza stop) - line 3 (Montnapoleone stop);
trams: 1, 4, 12, 14, 27;
bus: 61.

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The Pinacoteca de Brera is one of Italy's most important art galleries, housing an impressive collection of paintings by Italian masters from the 14th to the 20th centuries. The Pinacoteca is located in the Palazzo Brera, built by the Jesuits in the seventeenth century. It was built on the site of an old convent founded by the religious order of the Humilians in the 14th century.

A year after the Humilians were suppressed by a papal bull in 1571, the Jesuits took over the management of the convent and established a school, library and astronomical observatory there. They hired the architect Francesco Maria Ricini to build the main palace. In 1773, after almost two centuries, the building now known as Palazzo Brera was completed. The portal was completed even later, in 1780. Meanwhile, the Jesuits were expelled by the Austrian Empress Maria Theresa, who established a newly created art academy here. The palace was originally built in the Baroque style favored by the Jesuits, but at the end of the eighteenth century it was reconstructed in the neoclassical style preferred by Maria Teresa.


A portal with stone columns leads to a rectangular courtyard bounded by an arcade. In the middle of the courtyard is a bronze statue of Napoleon. It was created in 1809 by the Venetian sculptor Antonio Canova, who depicted the French emperor as Mars the Peacemaker. Many other statues in the courtyard honor famous artists, scientists and patrons of the arts.


Palazzo Brera houses several cultural institutions, including a library, an observatory, an academy of sciences and arts, and an art gallery. The art gallery's collection began with small sketches and copies of sculptures created by students of the Brera Academy of Arts. But during the Napoleonic era the situation changed - the collection expanded significantly with masterpieces of art confiscated from monasteries and churches.


In 1809, Napoleon founded the Pinacoteca de Brera, where all works of art are displayed. Four rooms in the Palazzo Brera were allocated for the Pinacoteca. In 1882, after the unification of Italy, the Pinacoteca Brera was separated from the Academy of Arts and became a state gallery. When Napoleon declared Milan the capital of the Kingdom of Italy, the gallery was replenished with new works from other regions, including works by the artists Raphael and Caravaggio. An exchange was made with the Paris Louvre, as a result of which works by Rubens, Van Dyck and other outstanding painters appeared in the Brera Pinacoteca. During the 19th and 20th centuries, the exhibition continued to expand through numerous donations and acquisitions.





All works of art in the Pinacoteca de Brera are presented in chronological order, covering a period of six centuries. Most of the paintings are by Italian artists, with a particularly large series from the Renaissance period from Lombardy and Veneto. The museum contains the largest collection of Venetian art outside of Venice. Among the gallery's highlights are Piero della Francesca's Madonna and Child with Saints, Raphael's Marriage of the Immaculate, Caravaggio's Supper at Emmaus and Mantegna's Lamentation of the Dead Christ.

Pinacoteca Brera is one of the largest art galleries in Milan, which includes 38 rooms dedicated to works of art from various schools and eras. The name “pinakothek” is derived from two ancient Greek words – “board” and “storage”. Literally, the Pinakothek is a place for storing picturesque images. The Pinacoteca Brera was named so due to its location - the gallery is located in the historical quarter of Brera, from the Italian word “braida” or “brera”, literally translated as “land cleared of trees”. The gallery is located on the second floor of an ancient palazzo, on the first floor of which the Milan Academy of Fine Arts is located.

Palazzo Brera houses many paintings by famous artists: Titian, El Greco, Van Dyck and other masters. Paintings in the halls are placed according to two factors:

• A period of time;
• The school of painting in whose traditions the painting was made.

The exception is Hall X, dedicated to the works of modern masters.

In each room you can see genuine masterpieces of a particular era. For example, in room XXI there is the famous “Wedding of Mary”, painted by Raphael Santi, and for those who want to see only the most popular works, the excursion brochure indicates a special route that will allow you to get acquainted with the famous paintings and save time.

The building itself dates back to the end of the 16th - beginning of the 17th centuries, to the Italian Baroque period. Initially, the palazzo belonged to the Umilian Order, then, after the abolition of the order, it passed to the Jesuits, who opened a university in the Pinacoteca. At the end of the 16th century, the building became unsuitable for scientific activities, and a decision was made to reconstruct the palazzo. The work was led by the Italian Baroque architect Francesco Maria Ricini. Work on the project was slowed down by the plague epidemic; the reconstruction was completed by Ricini’s son, Gian Domenico. By the time the work was completed, the Jesuit order, which owned the palazzo, was abolished, and the huge building became the property of the state.

In 1776, Empress Maria of Austria signed an order to found the Academy of Fine Arts in the Brera quarter, in the building of the future Pinakothek. As a scientific aid to the Academy, at the same time, in 1776, an art gallery was opened, the collections of which became a visual aid for young artists.

In 1796, Napoleon's army invaded the Apennine Peninsula and Milan became part of the Kingdom of Italy. Naturally, these historical changes affected the Accademia and Pinacoteca Brera. Under the Empress of Austria, the Pinakothek existed on income received from the dissolution of monasteries and monastic orders. With the arrival of Bonaparte, the gallery was given the status of a public art museum. Brera's collections are actually replenished through the looting of church and monastery storehouses - from there, the French take works of art that have at least some value to the Pinacoteca.

Under the rule of Napoleon, the Pinakothek had separate rooms entirely dedicated to various images of the emperor. The pearl of the “Napoleonic” collection was a bronze statue of the emperor, dressed in an ancient Roman toga, by the famous sculptor Antonio Canova. In 1859, the statue was moved to the center of the palazzo courtyard, where it can still be seen today.

The Pinacoteca Brera officially opened its doors on April 20, 1809. With the end of the Bonapartist regime, by the decision of the Congress of Vienna in 1814, the gallery was obliged to return some of the paintings to their owners. However, the museum's holdings continued to expand and in 1882 it was decided to give the Pinakothek the status of an independent cultural institution.

The First World War did not damage Brera - the collections were transported to Rome, and the building was not affected by hostilities. But during World War II, the museum had a hard time. Milan was subjected to constant bombing; vaults collapsed in 30 gallery halls, causing damage to a priceless architectural monument. The works of art were saved only thanks to the efforts of the museum director, Fernanda Wittgens. To restore the building, the gallery was closed in 1943 and reopened in 1950.

Today, the Pinacoteca is a real museum center - the largest library in Milan operates here, there is a craft school and all kinds of art history projects and events are held. The museum has prepared a surprise for birthday people - on their birthday you can visit the gallery for free by presenting your passport.

After visiting the museum, you can have a snack in the cafe located on the terrace. During the Pinakothek's opening hours, a bookstore is open where you can purchase albums and books dedicated to the museum.

In addition to the Pinacoteca, Palazzo Brera houses the city observatory, an archaeological museum and a collection of casts from ancient sculptures.