Two cities, Torino e St. Petersburg, expression of two states very distant from each other in terms of geo-localization, much closer than one can imagine if one looks at social cultures.
Two cities that sniffed each other, recognized each other and finally chose each other. Two museums that pass the baton as in the most typical of relay races.
As of December 21, 2013 e until 23 February 2014, the Hermitage in St. Petersburg will host the Portrait of a Man by Antonello da Messina, a leading exponent of the best Italian Renaissance, while the Palazzo Madama in Turin will host Raphael's Holy Family With St. Joseph Without Beard: an exchange of treasures, aimed at to the diffusion of the knowledge of the great artists who have made the history of art and to renew the already successful summer experience that had seen about ninety works from the Basilewsky collection exhibited in Turin, most of which had been missing in Europe for over a hundred years.
The Holy Family With St. Joseph Without Beard is not special only because it was conceived by the genius of Raphael. What makes this painting special are the strong humanization of Joseph and his contemporaneization, enclosed in that lack of beard that sanctions, almost overwhelmingly, its nature. He is a holy born man who in the family, as sacred as all families are, now and then, was simply a man.
The full entrance ticket to the museum is 10 € and also includes Raphael's masterpiece. The reduced ticket is 8 euros. Children under the age of 18 enter for free. If you opt for the guided tour, there is an additional 4 euros.
At Palazzo Madama each disabled person and his / her companion enter for free. People with disabilities can use special lifts, also equipped with external and internal Braille buttons for the visually impaired. Free guided tours and special itineraries with audio guides are reserved for the latter. Art that breaks down barriers is more beautiful.
