Reopened to the public after decades, the Gallery of Frescos at theIstituto degli Innocenti in Florence, part of the original building designed and built by Filippo Brunelleschi. Now this historic space is once again accessible to visitors, becoming an integral part of the permanent museum itinerary of the Museo degli Innocenti.
Open to all since May 22 and officially included in the museum itinerary since May 23, the Gallery of Frescos was inaugurated in the presence of leading city and regional authorities, including the president of theInstitute Maria Grazia Giuffrida, President of the Region of Tuscany Eugenio Giani, Mayor of Florence Sara Funaro, Simona Pasquinucci, head of the Curatorial Division of the Uffizi Galleries, and Sabrina Breschi, director general of the Istituto degli Innocenti, and under the patronage of the City of Florence.
Located in the inner quadrangle of the architectural complex, the Gallery has served multiple functions over the centuries, also housing offices and other activities of the administration. In 1971, after the 1966 flood of Florence, it housed an important nucleus of detached frescoes and sinopias, received on deposit by the Soprintendenza alle Gallerie Fiorentine-now the Uffizi Galleries.The works, which cover a chronological span from around the 13th to the 18th century, had until then been kept at the Cenacolo di San Salvatore in Ognissanti and, after the flood, were restored and entrusted to the Institute, in conjunction with the transfer and reorganization of the Museo degli Innocenti on the second floor.
A total of 28 works are preserved in the Gallery: twenty-seven detached sinopites and frescoes on deposit, including two nuclei consisting of the sixteenth-century pictorial cycle by Alessandro Allori and workshop and two wall paintings by Lorenzo Monaco dating from the early fifteenth century, and the Dispute of Saint Catherine of Alexandria with the Philosophers by Bernardino Poccetti, a work owned by the Institute.
The exhibition itinerary has been completely renovated and now follows a chronological and thematic order, with a layout that aims to encourage a close view of the works, thanks in part to their placement on the wall at a “lowered” height, but preserves, where possible, the previous placements. New information panels accompany the visit with details on artistic techniques and restoration work.
The redevelopment project, presented in August 2023 and financed through PNRR funds from the Ministry of Culture (worth nearly 500,000 euros), has enabled not only the enhancement of the spaces, but also their full accessibility. In addition to the Gallery, the work also involved the Little Chapel of the Sisters, overlooking the church of Santa Maria degli Innocenti, and the two Prior’s Rooms, which have now been completely renovated, furnished and equipped with the necessary technologies for holding cultural activities and small exhibition events. Prior to the intervention, both works in the collection and the fresco with the Dispute of St. Catherine of Alexandria by Bernardino Poccetti were temporarily removed and subjected to cleaning, consolidation and pictorial retouching. A new bracketing system was also implemented.
Great attention has been paid toaccessibility: the tactile path for the visually impaired has been extended, tactile reproductions in four-color and braille have been introduced, and a new guidebook for facilitated reading of the museum for people with intellectual disabilities has been created. The entire museum route was also equipped with new signage and a revamped website in Italian and English.
Among the most representative works is the pictorial cycle by Alessandro Allori and workshop for the chapel of the Ospedale delle Donne in Santa Maria Nuova in 1576, with episodes from the Old Testament and six large figures of prophets. Also of great importance are the works by Lorenzo Monaco displayed in the renovated Nuns’ Chapel: a Crucifixion with the Madonna and St. John the Evangelist and Christ in Pietà.
A section of the Gallery is devoted to sinopites and in-depth study of fresco making and restoration techniques, with 15th-century works by Bicci di Lorenzo(Madonna and Child between St. John the Baptist and Saint Monk, St. Anthony Abbot, Madonna and Child between Saints Leonard and George) and Matteo Rosselli’sLast Supper. In the entrance vestibule to the Prior’s Rooms, on the other hand, one can admire Bernardino Poccetti’s fresco with the Dispute of St. Catherine, dated 1612.
With this reopening, the Gallery of Frescos is fully integrated into the Museo degli Innocenti, offering the public an artistic and historical heritage that has finally been returned, in an accessible, renewed and rich context.
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| Florence, Innocenti Museum's fresco gallery reopens to the public after decades |
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