The exhibition “Art from Inside. Masterpieces unveiled between art and science” is the result of a project by the Bracco Foundation, born from a long journey of research, study, and collaboration grounded in a firm conviction: the technologies used to treat the human body can also become valuable tools for “caring for” works of art, revealing their hidden essence and contributing significantly to their restoration, preservation, and appreciation.
What lies “inside” a work of art?
“Art from Inside. Masterpieces unveiled between art and science” is a multimedia exhibition, produced by the Bracco Foundation in collaboration with 24 ORE Cultura-Gruppo 24 ORE, which proposes to visitors a question that is only apparently simple: what lies behind – and inside – a work of art? A world of research, restoration, conservation, and enhancement: fundamental yet often invisible aspects, which the public is rarely invited to explore.
A fascinating journey through art from the 15th to the 18th century, revealing – through diagnostic analyses and full-scale 1:1 reproductions – the hidden layers of eight masterpieces, in an immersive and multimedia narrative. A dialogue between art and science, where technology becomes both a tool of investigation and a source of wonder, granting access to dimensions which are normally invisible. From Beato Angelico to Piero della Francesca, from Piero del Pollaiolo to Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio, to Caravaggio, Giovanna Garzoni - one of the foremost female artists of her century - and a precious 18th- century violin by Lorenzo Storioni, the exhibition presents a pantheon of masters who shaped the history of Italian art, now explored from an entirely new perspective.
Thanks to a meticulous scientific investigation, each work reveals a “secret life”: hidden choices, revisions, changes in patronage, compositional variations, and technical stratifications. All elements invisible to the naked eye, revealed thanks to the most advanced diagnostic technologies. Where the gaze of restorers and art historians must stop, science now can step in – unveiling what has remained concealed beneath the surface for centuries. A radical and captivating immersion into the creative process of artists.
Produced with scientific consultation from the team led by Isabella Castiglioni, Professor of Applied Physics at the University of Milan-Bicocca and Scientific Director of the Centro Diagnostico Italiano (CDI), and art historian Stefano Zuffi, the exhibition was conceived as a cultural project aimed at bringing the dialogue between art and science to an increasingly broad and international audience.
Exhibition venues
- Milan, Palazzo Reale – October 9, 2025, to January 6, 2026: The free exhibition attracted nearly 40,000 visitors during its three-month run. It emerged as one of the most successful events demonstrating the effectiveness of a model in which scientific and artistic content come together to create a unique and stimulating experience, thanks to the use of contemporary approaches and collaboration among different stakeholders.
- Leipzig (Germany), RÖKO Leipzig 2026. 107th German X-Ray Congress for Medical Radiology and Image-Guided Therapy – May 13–15, 2026
