Conservation and Restoration
The restoration workshop is a light, transparent structure situated in the heart of the Pinacoteca, designed by Ettore Sottsass in 2001; it has been completely restored thanks to the support of Bank of America Merrill Lynch, main sponsor of the Pinacoteca di Brera that also supported the restoration of Giambattista Tiepolo’s masterpiece: La Madonna del Carmelo fra i Santi. Conservation has become part and parcel of the visitor experience in the Pinacoteca.
Visitors have a unique opportunity to track the various steps in the restoration of a painting from close up, even viewing the work from different angles (such as the back, which is not normally visible to the public).
The workshop, which also takes an active part in the organisation of exhibitions and events, plays a key role in researching and diagnosing the state of conservation of the Pinacoteca’s paintings.

Over the years, the laboratory has been updated and overhauled, and equipped with new instrumentation, useful for restoration and performing scientific investigations of the museum’s works.
Two large monitors provide information, including through the use of images and films, on the restorations underway. Twice a month it is also possible to participate in meetings dedicated by the restoration laboratory to illustrate activities and answer visitors’ curiosities.
Video

Andrea Carini takes us inside the restoration workshop, whose activities continue even during the lockdown.

Preventive conservation is essential to have an up-to-date clinical picture of the works and prevent their deterioration. We accompany our restorer on her monitoring tour.

As in the case of Francesco Albani’s “Danza degli amorini” (1623-1625), the restoration of a painting is as complex as it is fascinating.

PART 1 | Our workshop is nearing completion of the restoration of one of the most beautiful portraits in the Pinacoteca, the “Ritratto di gentiluomo anziano con guanti” (possibly Liberale da Pinedel) painted by Lorenzo Lotto.

PART 2 | Part 2 of the in-depth study on the restoration of Lorenzo Lotto’s “Ritratto di gentiluomo anziano con guanti (Liberale da Pinedel?),” by the Pinacoteca workshop.

PART 1 | Our “picture doctors” reveal the secrets of the restoration of Marco d’Oggiono’s “Madonna and Child” (1525) by the Picture Gallery workshop.

PART 2 | Insight into the restoration of Marco d’Oggiono’s “Madonna and Child” (1525) by the workshop of the Pinacoteca.
Restoration
Restoration laboratory
Andrea Carini
responsible for the office
[email protected]
Valentina Balconi
[email protected]
Paola Borghese
[email protected]
Sofia Incarbone
[email protected]
Ilaria Negri
[email protected]
Transparent Restoration
On the first and third Wednesdays of the month, one of the public’s most beloved appointments, “Transparent Restoration,” is held at the Pinacoteca Brera: guided tours by our restoration laboratory, held in Room XVIII or other spaces in the museum, to answer participants’ curiosities and illustrate the conservation operations underway (in Italian language).