Michelangelo and Bologna

From November 14, 2025, to February 15, 2026, Palazzo Fava will host Michelangelo and Bologna, a major exhibition celebrating the 550th anniversary of Michelangelo Buonarroti’s birth. Promoted by the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio in Bologna as part of the Genus Bononiae cultural project and produced by Opera Laboratori, the exhibition is curated by Cristina Acidini, President of the Fondazione Casa Buonarroti and the Accademia delle Arti del Disegno, and Alessandro Cecchi, Director of the Fondazione Casa Buonarroti.

The exhibition offers a unique insight into Michelangelo’s relationship with the city of Bologna, focusing on the periods he spent there that shaped his artistic development and career. It opens in Florence, with early works such as the Madonna della Scala and a selection of rare drawings, and continues through 1494, when the young sculptor — who had taken refuge in Bologna after the expulsion of the Medici — received the commission for the Arca di San Domenico. The statues of Saint Proculus, Saint Petronius, and the Angel Holding a Candlestick reveal both his precocious maturity and the influence of Emilian sculpture on his evolving style.

The exhibition also recreates the Bologna of the Bentivoglio family, a vibrant cultural center between the 15th and 16th centuries, and highlights Michelangelo’s second stay (1506–1508), when he was summoned by Pope Julius II to create the colossal bronze statue of the pontiff for San Petronio — now lost. Letters, documents, and an original drawing for the tomb of Julius II complete this compelling narrative.

Works by Ercole de’ Roberti, Francesco Francia, Lorenzo Costa, and Amico Aspertini will also be on display, illustrating the rich and dynamic artistic environment of the period.

A program of educational activities and two special “Musical Frescoes” concerts, organized in collaboration with the Fondazione Musica Insieme, will accompany the exhibition. The initiative aims to reveal a more intimate and “poetic” side of Michelangelo and his dialogue with Bologna — a pivotal crossroads of the Renaissance.