In the heart of Mantua, Palazzo Te is 500 years old. But it does not age. On the contrary, this extraordinary Mannerist masterpiece, conceived between 1525 and 1535 by the genius of Giulio Romano for Federico II Gonzaga, relaunches its voice through a series of events, exhibitions and celebrations that make this anniversary a total cultural experience.
An architecture that deceives and reveals
Palazzo Te has always been a place of pleasure, power, illusions and visions. The architecture is provocative, the frescoes irreverent. Each room is a baroque ante litteram prestige game: forced perspectives, figures that break through the wall, ancient myths that are charged with a modern and restless sense. Today, as 500 years ago, the palace is not visited: it is crossed. You suffer.
2025: a year of celebrations between ancient and contemporary art
From 29 March to 29 June 2025, the visit route is enriched with the exhibition “From chaos to the cosmos. Metamorphosis at Palazzo Te”, curated by Claudia Cieri Via. It is the pivotal event of the 500th anniversary. The exhibition aims to rediscover Palazzo Te as a total work of art, putting in dialogue the frescoes by Giulio Romano with masterpieces from international institutions such as the Louvre, the Albertina in Vienna, the Prado, the Borghese Gallery and the Uffizi.
The exhibition is divided into thematic sections that explore, through the myths of Ovid, concepts such as metamorphosis, eros, power, double and punishment. Works by Tintoretto, Correggio, Rubens, Jacopo Zucchi, Poussin, up to the contemporary Giuseppe Penone, offer a visual counterpoint that re-interprets every room of the palace in a new key. An exhibition that crosses time and meaning
Among the most striking sections:
“The Tales of Ovid”, which links the frescoes with the preparatory drawings by Giulio Romano, from the Louvre and the Albertina.
“The cyclicality of time”, housed in the Chamber of the Sun and the Moon, with precious ancient volumes inspiring the decoration of Mantua.
“Virtue, Eros and Power” in the Sala dei Cavalli, where engravings by Adamo Scultori and paintings such as Danae by Correggio e Minerva and Aracne by Tintoretto interact with the monochrome walls.
“Eros and Sublimation” in the famous Camera of Love and Psyche, where the visions of Giulio Romano are compared with those of Jacopo Zucchi.
“Dal doppio all’ibrido”, in the Sala dei Venti, where the Narcissus at the source of Boltraffio and Salmace and Scarsellino’s Hermaphrodite become symbols of identity and mutation.
“Pride and punishment” in the Chamber of Eagles, with masterpieces such as Rubens’ Proserpina’s Rat.
“Performance of nature, in nature”, where the bronze Daphnia by Giuseppe Penone evokes the fusion between body, tree and spirit.
The tour ends with “From Chaos to Cosmos: the triumph of Ovid”, a section that pays homage to the Latin poet and his secular influence, also evoked by Nicolas Poussin with his Ovid’s Triumph, presented by the Corsini Gallery.
Beyond the exhibition: a year of events
The 500th anniversary programme covers the whole year, including:
Festival Trame Sonore (29 May – 2 June)
Heterotopie concerts (23 May and 4 July)
Palace Te Dance Festival (23-26 July)
Exhibition of Isaac Julien (4 October – 6 January 2026)
Each event is conceived as a sensory extension of the vision of Giulio Romano: an art that is not contemplated, but lived.
Why is Palazzo Te an emblem of the Italian genius: visionary, cultured, free?
In a time that forgets the deep meaning of metamorphosis, this exhibition reminds us that art, like identity, is continuous transformation. And because telling about Italy does not only mean evoking the past, but going through the present through what belongs to us forever.
Useful information for the travelling reader:
Where: Palazzo Te, Viale Te 13, Mantova
Exhibition “From chaos to the cosmos”: 29 March – 29 June 2025
Tickets and full programme: www.centropalazzote.it