Top Art Exhibitions in Rome — Autumn 2025
Looking for the best exhibitions in Rome this autumn 2025? The city’s museums and galleries are rolling out a standout season. From Gauguin’s evocative travel diaries to Mucha’s graceful Art Nouveau and Dalí’s dreamlike surrealism, alongside notable contemporary shows. Use our guide to the top art exhibitions in Rome to plan your fall visits and enjoy a journey across time, cultures, and creative expression.
INSPIRATION
Best Museums in Rome
Opening the cultural calendar on September 6, 2025, Gauguin: The Noa Noa Diary and Other Adventures at the Historical Museum of the Infantry. The exhibition is ispired by the French artist’s memories as collected in his Tahiti travel journal. In addition to the painter’s observations, the diary includes xilographies which depict Polynesian’s myths and traditions. Visitors will be able to see a series of lytographies coming from the book Avant et Après and to understand the artist’s work getting a glimpse at his personal notebook. This exhibition will run until January 25, 2026.
Gauguin: The Noa Noa Diary and Other Adventures
Just a month later, on October 4, the same venue will host the exhibition entitled Picasso: The language of Ideas, a showcase of the artist’s lithographs, ceramics, and drawings, also on view until January 25, 2026. The show unfolds across six thematic sections, tracing Picasso’s journey from academic realism to his innovative work on the art of inscription. On display there will be numerous lithographs and etchings covering the major phases of his career, alongside a significant collection of ceramics that reveal his talent for transforming different materials into creative objects. A standout feature is the section dedicated to his less known work for the Russian ballets, with original costumes and set designs for Le Tricorne, inspired by Spanish folk traditions.
Picasso: The language of Ideas
At Palazzo Bonaparte, from October 8, 2025, visitors can immerse themselves in the elegance of the Belle Époque with Alphonse Mucha, a major retrospective on the Czech master of Art Nouveau, open through March 8, 2026. In addition to more than 150 artworks by Mucha, the exhibition will focus on the theme of beauty and feminine charm with the extraordinary presence of the painting Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli coming from the Royal Museum of Turin.
Alphonse Mucha (Art Nouveau & Belle Époque)
Meanwhile, surrealism takes center stage at Palazzo Cipolla with Dalí: Revolution and Tradition, opening October 17 and continuing until February 1, 2026, exploring the Spanish icon’s bold experimentation and dreamlike visions. It will be possible to admire more than 60 artworks including paintings and drawings borrowed from major Spanish institutions such as the Gala-Salvador Dalí Foundation, the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía and the Uffizi Galleries.
Dalí: Revolution and Tradition
For those drawn to the mysteries of ancient civilizations, Treasures of the Pharaohs at the Scuderie del Quirinale opens on October 23, 2025, offering a rare glimpse into the splendor of ancient Egypt. The exhibition offers a rare and unmissable chance to view 130 masterpieces from Egypt’s most prestigious museums. Through these works of art, visitors can explore the fascinating journey of ancient Egypt—from its earliest origins, through the golden age of the New Kingdom and the Third Intermediate Period, to some of the most remarkable archaeological discoveries in recent times.
The exhibition runs until May 3, 2026.
Treasures of the Pharaohs
Contemporary photography also claims the spotlight with the 9th Edition of the Graziadei Photography Award, featuring Nicola Di Giorgio’s innovative works centered on materiality and architecture, on view at MAXXI from September 19 to November 2, 2025. Calcestruzzo (Concrete) is a multidisciplinary project that investigates the pervasive role of concrete in the modern Italian landscape. Through photography and installation, it explores interconnected themes—from the material’s historical and scientific relevance to personal and urban narratives—highlighting the relationship between natural and artificial forces shaping cities.
9th edition of the Graziadei Photography Award: Nicola Di Giorgio
