Two photographs by Chinese artist Liu Bolin will become part of the permanent collection of the Pinacoteca di Brera. The donation was formalized today in the sacristy of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan, next to Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper, in the presence of the artist, who is known for his performances based on camouflaging his body within sites of great historical and symbolic significance.
The works belong to the series *A Message for Beauty* and document the performance staged in October 2025 in front of Leonardo da Vinci’s*The Last Supper* and inside the Basilica of Santa Maria delle Grazie. The addition of these two photographs to the Pinacoteca’s collection strengthens the relationship that has developed in recent years between Liu Bolin and the city of Milan.
The project began in 2025, when the artist was welcomed to the UNESCO site “Church and Dominican Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie with Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper ” to carry out an intervention aimed at spreading a message of peace, an Olympic truce, and the protection of world heritage on the occasion of the Milan-Cortina Olympic Games. That experience gave rise to the two-part photo series *A Message for Beauty*, the result of a collaborative initiative involving the Pinacoteca di Brera, the Braidense National Library, the Museo del Cenacolo Vinciano, and the Gaburro Gallery.
In the images, the artist blends into his surroundings, both in front of Leonardo’s masterpiece and in the Bramante tribune inside the basilica. His camouflaged presence evokes the theme of the resilience of beauty—capable of surviving the destruction, wars, and violence that have marked history and that also affected the Last Supper and Santa Maria delle Grazie, both damaged by bombing during World War II.
On the occasion of the donation, Liu Bolin noted that his artistic practice stems from a form of respect: disappearing does not mean ceasing to exist, but rather becoming part of something greater, preserving memory and projecting it into the future. In front of*The Last Supper* and within the basilica, this gesture thus takes on the meaning of a message dedicated to peace and beauty.
“The works that make up the diptych *A Message for Beauty* were created to convey a message of peace and beauty during a controversial period in our history,” says Chiara Rostagno, Deputy Director of the Pinacoteca di Brera and Executive Director of the National Museum of the Last Supper. “The Basilica of Santa Maria delle Grazie and the National Museum of the Vinci Last Supper bear on their very walls the tangible marks of the horrors of war following the bombing they suffered in August 1943. We embraced Liu Bolin’s project to send a powerful message: we can connect with the beauty of our heritage and draw strength from it to face life with hope.”
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| Milan: The Pinacoteca di Brera Acquires Two Works by Liu Bolin Inspired by *The Last Supper* |
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