Today was entirely spent in two galleries, the Gallery Poldi-Pizzoli and the Pinatoceta Brera. The Poldi-Puzzoli was a private residence and holds the family’s furnishings, art, personal effects. Only one original room remains from the WWII bombings. It is beautifully appointed with mosaics & murals. There are photographs in each reconstructed room which show the original. The paintings, sculptures and other personal effects were surely safely stored during the war as they are all on display. It is a museunzm in the likeness of the Isabella Stewart Gardner and the Frick. There was a special Botticelli show with the Madonna of the Book, which they own and had just been cleaned. Also, one of the 3 Giullano Medici portraits and others.
The Pinacoteca Brera Museum is the repository of Napolean’s conquests. It’s a large and grand place with the majority of the paintings from the Renaissance. (I’ve seen more Madonnas in the last 3 weeks than a human can comprehend) particularly impressive were Mantegna’s Dead Christ, Raphael’s Berhrol of the Virgin, Carravaggio’s Supper at Emaus, Tintorettos, tons of Bellinis. An artist whom I wasn’t familiar with but both of us were greatly impressed by was Crivelli. His color was highly chromatic, the textures complex & myriad, and the faces less flat. There was a painting by Francisco Hayze, The Kiss, that was reproduced on everything imaginable for sale in the bookstore. I am unformiliar with this painting, & don’t know the importance. Can anyone tell me this?
We had dinner at a Greek/Italian restaurant which specialized in fish: oysters on the 1/2, linguini & mussels, & spaghetti & squid. All was delicious. We’ve also now determined that we were not being charged for the bread all this time. We finally questioned the charge & were informed it is a “table” charge. In other words a tip.
