Leonardo and the Litta Madonna

On the occasion of the celebrations of the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci, the beautiful Litta Madonna from the collections of the Hermitage.

The five-hundred year anniversary of the death of Leonardo finds one of its most significant moments in the return of the Litta Madonna to Milan, where it was painted. Its display at the Poldi Pezzoli Museum, alongside other works from the Litta Collection, brings together a group of precious paintings, drawings, and prints by the most talented students and followers of the master. This not only sheds light on the production methods of his atelier but also offers a measure of the success of the Leonardesque prototype.

The exhibition features masterpieces reinterpreted by Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio, Marco d'Oggiono, Francesco Napoletano, the Master of the Sforza Altarpiece, and other anonymous followers, spanning from the late 1400s to the early 1500s.

Essays and entries by authoritative scholars on the work of Leonardo and his circle enrich this publication, edited by Andrea Di Lorenzo and Pietro C. Marani.