Mantegna's Dead Christ in dialogue with Carracci and Borgianni at Brera

Andrea Mantegna's 'Dead Christ' (c. 1480), voted the most beloved work at the Pinacoteca di Brera in an online survey, is the focus of the second of three 'dialogues' planned for 2016. Until September 25, the painting's unprecedented perspective is echoed by two later works that adopt its subject and framing: Annibale Carracci's 'Dead Christ with the Instruments of the Passion' (1583-85) from the Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, marked by a modern, sensual realism, and Orazio Borgianni's 'Lamentation over the Dead Christ' (1615) from the Galleria Spada in Rome, more idealized yet immersed in extreme, post-Caravaggesque darkness. The initiative, with free admission on Thursday June 16 from 8:30 AM to 10:15 PM, is part of the renewal undertaken by new director James Bradburne. While not a revolution, several small improvements are noticeable, particularly in the clarity of the itinerary. Concurrently, rooms 1 to 7 are being reorganized (rooms 20-24 were already renovated in recent months), and new informative labels are introduced—though some kitsch comparisons, such as likening Carracci's painting to those of Freud, are noted. Upcoming changes include the reopening of the central entrance door, the transfer of modern art collections to Palazzo Citterio in 2018, the relaunch of the Biblioteca Braidense, and the opening of a bar.