Palazzo Barberini Opens New Rooms with Portrait Exhibition 'Eco e Narciso'

Palazzo Barberini in Rome has inaugurated eleven newly restored rooms with the exhibition 'Eco e Narciso', featuring a dialogue between historical and contemporary portraits. The show juxtaposes works from the Gallerie Nazionali Barberini Corsini with contemporary pieces from MAXXI's collections. Caravaggio's 'Narciso' is paired with a site-specific installation by Giulio Paolini in the Oval Room designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. The exhibition explores themes of identity, narcissism, and power through pairings such as Bernini's marble portrait of Pope Urban VIII with Yan Pei-Ming's pop icons of the Pope and Mao. Other juxtapositions include Marco Benefial's 'Ritratto della famiglia Quarantotti' with Yinka Shonibare's 'The Invisible Man', and works by Luca Giordano with Markus Schinwald's 2018 paintings. Female identity is examined through Guido Reni's 'Ritratto di Beatrice Cenci' alongside Shirin Neshat's video 'Illusions & Mirrors', and Rosalba Carriera's pastels with Kiki Smith's porcelain sculptures. Piero di Cosimo's 'La Maddalena' and Raphael's 'La Fornarina' contrast sainthood and lover. Stefano Arienti's intimate paintings of same-sex couples and Pierre Subleyras's sensual 'Nudo femminile di schiena' address private dimensions. The exhibition runs at Palazzo Barberini, Rome.