The Fondazione Ugo Da Como in Lonato del Garda (Brescia) is hosting an exhibition entitled Arnaldo da Brescia in the work of Odoardo Tabacchi and Antonio Tagliaferri inside the Casa del Podestà from September 26, 2025 to January 26, 2026. The initiative is part of the celebrations called Arnaldo da Brescia. Martyr and Rebel and the European Heritage Days on September 27 and 28, when admission will be free. The review aims to enhance the monument to Arnaldo da Brescia, inaugurated in 1882 and created by sculptor Odoardo Tabacchi (Valganna, 1831 - Milan, 1905) with the collaboration of architect Antonio Tagliaferri. The historical figure of Arnaldo da Brescia (Brescia, late 11th century or early 12th century - Rome, 1155) received a definitive rehabilitation in the second half of the 19th century, when he was recognized as a symbol of free thought and rebellion. The city of Brescia, recognizing his value, decided to dedicate a public monument to him. The Ugo Da Como Foundation preserves a patrimony that allows us to understand the complex story linked to the work, which was conceived at the instigation of statesman Giuseppe Zanardelli as early as 1860, entrusted to Tabacchi after the public competition held by the City of Brescia in 1869 and placed in the square of the same name by Tagliaferri, to be finally inaugurated twenty-two years later, in 1882.
Inside the Casa del Podestà, some furnishings recreate the history of the monument. These include a bronze sculpture preserved in the Brescia Room of the Library, which recalls Senator Zanardelli’s ideological closeness to liberal and anticlerical thought. This sculpture represents a rare testimony to the path that led Tabacchi to create the work, also showing the creative process prior to the Brescian competition.
Over the years, the Foundation has expanded its collections with significant new evidence. The Antonio and Giovanni Tagliaferri archive, donated in 2010, includes iconographic and design documents related to the monument. Additional works were acquired in 2016, including a patinated plaster signed by Tabacchi and a Carrara marble sculpture, purchased with the support of the Da Como Foundation, the CAB Foundation, and the Friends of Museums Association. The latter, in addition to testifying to the sculptor’s expertise, makes it possible to observe the initial design of the Arnaldo, conceived as early as 1866, years before the competition, with an attitude of the historical figure different from the one later realized, more restrained than Tabacchi’s original idea, known for his anticlerical beliefs. The Lonato Library also preserves documentation related to the promotion and popularization of the work. Prior to the monument’s inauguration, a widespread publishing campaign aimed to raise awareness and encourage the realization of the project, which was the subject of debate and contestation in the second half of the 19th century.
The exhibition, set up in the Casa del Podestà, brings together more than forty testimonies including documents, photographs, sculptures and drawings carefully selected from the Foundation’s collections. Two drawings by Antonio Tagliaferri, preparatory for two postcards made on the occasion of the event, highlight how the monument was chosen as a sculptural symbol. The exhibition takes place in the halls of the Ugo Da Como Library and House Museum and observes the same visiting hours: Monday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., with last access at 5 p.m. The initiative is promoted by the Municipality of Brescia and coordinated by the association Cieli Vibranti, with the patronage of the Lombardy 19th century Network, the Municipality of Lonato del Garda and the Friends of the Ugo Da Como Foundation Association. The exhibition aims to offer the public a complete picture of the monument to Arnaldo da Brescia, its design and construction phases, and the cultural and political tensions that accompanied its birth.
 |
| Lonato del Garda celebrates Arnaldo da Brescia with documents and historic sculptures |
Warning: the translation into English of the original Italian article was created using automatic tools. We undertake to review all articles, but we do not guarantee the total absence of inaccuracies in the translation due to the program. You can find the original by clicking on the ITA button. If you find any mistake,please contact us.
