The monographic exhibition Ambrogio Lorenzetti will be on display at the Ospedale di Santa Maria della Scala in Siena from October 22, 2017 until January 21, 2018. The exhibition takes on one of the most famous Sienese painters, whose fresco cycle The Allegory of Good and Bad Government (1338-1339) is a staple of many introductory art history classes. Beyond this well known cycle, the exhibition presents a collection of Ambrogio’s works that have never before been shown together in an effort to provide a richer understanding of his diverse artistic contributions. Ambrogio Lorenzetti is the culminating project of the initiative Dentro il restauro, which has worked since 2015 to restore several of Ambrogio’s frescoes in the city of Siena, including those at the churches of San Francesco and Sant’Agostino, which are open to the public as part of the exhibition.
The exhibition’s primary venue, the former hospital of Santa Maria della Scala, itself presents an interesting glimpse into late-medieval life in Siena. The hospital was itself a major patron of the arts, and frescoes by Domenico di Bartolo, Priamo della Quercia and Vecchietta still survive on the walls of the former wards. The hospital also houses the original fragments of the Fonte Gaia by Jacopo della Quercia (1419).
Ambrogio Lorenzetti, Maestà, and the Story of San Galgano, detached fresco from the Church of San Galgano.
Ambrogio Lorenzetti, Maestà, tempera and gold on panel, Massa Marittima, Museo arte sacra.
Ambrogio Lorenzetti, The Effects of Good Government, fresco, Palazzo Pubblico, Siena, 1338-1339.