Inventing Nature: exhibition at Palazzo Te featuring Leonardo

Exhibition at Palazzo Te: "Inventing Nature"

When: 26 September 2026 – 10 January 2027
Where: Palazzo Te, Mantua
Curators: Barbara Furlotti and Guido Rebecchini

Palazzo Te stages an exhibition exploring how artists and courts of the 16th century observed, represented and harnessed nature. The display includes paintings, drawings, sculptures, tapestries, precious objects and automatons loaned by major museums across Europe.

Featured artists and highlights

The show places in dialogue key figures such as Leonardo da Vinci, Arcimboldo and Caravaggio, together with works by Annibale and Agostino Carracci, ancient artefacts and contemporary pieces that illuminate the period’s relationship with the natural world.

Exhibition layout

The itinerary is divided into seven thematic sections that map different Renaissance perspectives on nature:

• Create – celebrations of generative force and depictions of the Goddess Nature;
• Destroy – portrayals of nature’s uncontrollable power;
• Amaze – courtly grottoes, fountains and leisure settings;
• Know – descriptive and scientific approaches to nature and collecting;
• Reproduce – techniques and inventions to imitate nature;
• Astonish – rarities, exotic materials and mechanical wonders;
• Animate – representations of living beings, hybrids and metamorphoses.

Key spaces and moments

The route highlights Palazzo Te’s monumental rooms, including the dramatic Chamber of the Giants, creating a direct dialogue between the palace’s original decorative program and the loaned works. Visitors will encounter landscape studies, preparatory bozzetti, sculptures and an impressive tapestry with strong theatrical impact.

Related activities and audience

The Foundation will run an extensive program of educational workshops, talks and performances connected to the exhibition themes, aimed at schools, families and general audiences. The project also involves partnerships with local cultural organisations to connect the art and natural itineraries of the Mantua area.

Practical tip: check opening hours and visiting conditions on Palazzo Te’s official channels and consider booking tickets in advance to avoid queues on busy days.