The exhibition Hayez at the Gallerie d’Italia in Milan features 120 works from paintings to frescoes by the great Italian artist Francesco Hayez.
The works are presented in a chronological order, including self-portraits and paintings from the artist’s life in Venice and in Rome when still painting in the tradition of the Neoclassicism, to his days in Milan, where he became the leading artist of the mid-19th-century Romanticism, working next to people like the composer Giuseppe Verdi and the writer Alessandro Manzoni.
Highlight of the exhibition is the painting Il Bacio (The Kiss). Hayez painted three different versions (in 1859, 1861 and 1867) and for the first time can they be seen together in the same location, giving a perfect opportunity to appreciate Hayez’s artistic development later in his career.
It is probably the most sensual and spell-binding kiss ever to grace a canvas.
Gallerie d’Italia Piazza Scala
Piazza della Scala, 6
till 21 February 2016
Open Tue-Sun 9.30am-7.30pm; Thurs 9.30am-10.30pm. Closed on Mondays.
Entrance fee: €10
gallerieditalia.com/en/palazzi/piazza-scala
