Beato Angelico at the Palazzo Strozzi

A Heavenly Journey through Renaissance Florence

Slip into celestial beauty and eternal light with the new Beato Angelico exhibit at the Palazzo Strozzi and the Museo di San Marco, running from September 26, 2025 to January 25, 2026. More than an exhibit, it’s a portal into an era of profound faith and artistic revolution, where every brushstroke points to a divine promise fulfilled.

This unique two-part exhibition in the Palazzo Strozzi and the Museo di San Marco gathers over 140 works including paintings, drawings, miniatures, and sculptures. Many pieces are on loan from museums such as the Louvre in Paris, the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the National Gallery of Washington, the Vatican Museums, the Alte Pinakothek in Munich, and the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. Italian and international libraries and collections, churches, and regional institutions also loaned pieces for the exhibit. In the Museo di San Marco, pieces are on display in situ, right where they’ve always been, notably L’Annunciazione, San Domenico in adorazione del Crocifisso e la Madonna delle ombre.

Renowned for a style that builds on the Late Gothic tradition while incorporating the principles of the nascent Renaissance art, Beato Angelico (born Guido di Piero, later Fra Giovanni da Fiesole; Vicchio di Mugello, c. 1395 – Rome, 1455) created paintings celebrated for their skillful use of perspective, light, and the relationship between figures and space. The exhibition offers a unique opportunity to explore the friar-painter’s extraordinary artistic vision in relation to a profound religious sensibility founded on the meditation of the sacred in connection with the human.

Now open to the public after four years of meticulous preparation, the exhibit carries exceptional scientific value and cultural importance, thanks also to an extensive restoration campaign and the successful reunion of fragmented altarpieces that were dismembered and dispersed for more than two hundred years.

A Tale of Two Venues

The exhibition is a joint effort between two of Florence’s most important institutions: Palazzo Strozzi and the Museo di San Marco.

Palazzo Strozzi sets the stage with a carefully curated space that recreates the feeling of a sacred sanctuary. The lighting is designed to mimic natural sunlight, allowing the vibrant colors and golden halos of the artworks to shimmer as they would have in the chapels and churches for which they were originally commissioned for. Here you’ll see a stunning collection of Beato Angelico’s masterpieces gathered from around the world.

The journey continues at the Museo di San Marco, which holds a special significance as the very convent where Beato Angelico lived and worked. Seeing his frescoes in their original, historic setting becomes a spiritual experience. When light glints off the wings of his painted angels, the viewer witnesses his work as it was meant to be seen.

A Master of Light and Form

Beato Angelico’s art spans a breathtaking bridge between the ancient and the modern, employing gold leaf, rich color, and repeated, mesmerizing patterns, recalling the tradition of Greek Orthodox icons while skillfully incorporating new principles of Renaissance perspective and light. Even in his lifetime, Beato Angelico was called a “master of color.” His use of light and shadow in background architecture anticipates modern artists like Giorgio de Chirico, while the perfect symmetry of his compositions creates a sense of balance and calm. Beato Angelico’s sacred art offers an oasis of peace, support, and hope for the modern world.

Sanctuary for the Soul

Throughout the exhibit, you’ll encounter captivating details that bring these spiritual narratives to life. Notice the serene and knowing expression on Mary’s face, her robe draped with elegant simplicity. Look at the Infant Jesus, with the body of a baby but eyes that reflect the wisdom of the Word made flesh. See the gilded sentences that stream outward like banners from the mouths of angels. You’ll even find details that ground these heavenly scenes in a tangible world, from Persian rugs to vibrant palm trees. In one room, a rug on loan from the New York Met Museum is helpfully displayed next to its representation in a painting.

Strong evidence exists that Angelico likely read The Divine Comedy. Both Dante and Angelico were deeply rooted in Florentine culture. Angelico lived as a Dominican friar in Florence during the Early Renaissance, a period when the works of Dante were widely read and celebrated and the themes and imagery in some of Angelico’s paintings bear a clear resemblance to Dante’s detailed descriptions. Angelico’s famous painting, The Last Judgment, is a prime example. The organization of the saved and the damned, the specific torments in Hell, and the serene, organized dance of the blessed in Paradise all align with the vivid imagery in Dante’s epic poem. The painting’s landscape even features a large monster that is thought to be inspired by Dante’s detailed descriptions of the devil and his torments.

Beato Angelico and the Napoleonic Suppression

The story of how these artworks originated in Florence yet came to be displayed in museums around the world is a fascinating one, linked to a pivotal moment in Italian history: the Napoleonic suppressions of 1796-1814. During this time, Napoleon’s forces dissolved many religious orders, seizing and selling their rich and vast properties. While this action led to the dispersal and even destruction of many historical treasures, it also inadvertently laid the groundwork for modern Italian art museums. Confiscated art was often gathered into public collections, paving the way for institutions like the Pinacoteca di Brera in Milan.

A Story of Artistic Reunification

This exhibition is the culmination of over four years of painstaking research, a historic effort to locate and reunite pieces that had been separated for centuries. For the first time in over 200 years, you can see altarpieces and other works as they were seen in the 1400s.

The art itself offers intimate glimpses into a humble life that became a vessel for the sacred. From his beginnings in Mugello to his entry into the Dominican monastery with his brother Benedetto, Beato Angelico’s journey is reflected in his repeated themes: the Annunciation, the Adoration, the Madonna, and portraits of deep veneration.

This exhibit is a rare and unmissable opportunity to witness how the art and light of a friar from the 15th century can still speak to us today, offering a moment of grace and beauty.

Until 25 January 2026

Palazzo Strozzi
Opening times: Everyday 10am – 8pm (Thursdays until 11pm)
Tickets: €15

Museo San Marco
Opening times: Everyday 8.30am – 1.50pm
Tickets: €8

When you purchase your ticket, note that separate tickets are required to enter the Palazzo Strozzi and the Museo di San Marco.

palazzostrozzi.org

Related posts:

Anselm Kiefer: Fallen Angels at Palazzo Strozzi in Florence Palazzo Vecchio: Where the History of Florence Comes Alive The Enchantment of Orpheus on Display at Palazzo Medici Riccardi Anish Kapoor. Untrue Unreal