The temporary exhibition “Leonardo Da Vinci Parade” - curated and developed by the Museum – comprises a large selection of fascinating models built in the 1950s through the interpretation of Leonardesque drawings and frescoes by sixteenth century Lombard artists, granted for storage in 1952 by the Pinacoteca di Brera, directed at the time by Fernanda Wittgens. The Museum celebrates its origins by evocatively exhibiting the two collections with which it opened to the public on February 15th, 1953. Next to the machines there are recently restored plaster and terracotta models of military and civil architectures - many of which have not been on display for years. On two great walls, the torn frescos from Brera evoke the racks from the museum storage, by creating a suggestive collection of paintings where they are shown according to their place of origin, such as churches or no longer existing buildings in Milan. Among the painters, Bernardino Luini and his school play a fundamental role, as one of the most successful authors in early 1500s Lombardy. The exhibition is an unusual combination of art and science in an unprecedented show which touches Da Vinci’s numerous fields of interest and study through the worldwide renown historic collection of the Museum.

“Leonardo Da Vinci Parade” is the first initiative – both at national and international level – created in the frame of the celebrations for the 500 years from Leonardo da Vinci’s death (1519-2019) in the program of events “Milan and the inheritance of Leonardo 1519-2019”, presented by the Comune di Milano. The exhibition was created in cooperation with the Pinacoteca di Brera and with the support of Fondazione Cariplo.