A spectacular collection of 24 masterpieces by Caravaggio will be on display at Rome’s Palazzo Barberini from this Friday until 6 July. The Caravaggio 2025 exhibition offers visitors a rare opportunity to experience the dramatic intensity of one of the Baroque era’s most revolutionary painters.
The highly anticipated exhibition, Caravaggio 2025, hosted by the Gallerie Nazionali at Palazzo Barberini, has already generated immense interest, with 60,000 tickets sold before its official opening. Curated by Francesca Cappelletti, Maria Cristina Terzaghi, and Thomas Clement Salomon, the show is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of art lovers from around the world.
Caravaggio, known for his radical use of chiaroscuro and his strikingly realistic depictions of human emotion, transformed the art world of the late 16th and early 17th centuries. His intense naturalism and masterful play of light and shadow continue to captivate audiences, making any exhibition of his work a major cultural event.
Among the highlights of Caravaggio 2025 is the recently rediscovered Portrait of Maffeo Barberini, unveiled to the public just months ago. The exhibition also brings Ecce Homo back to Italy after four centuries, on loan from Madrid’s Museo Nacional del Prado. It will sit for the first time alongside two versions of St. John the Baptist,. Other iconic works include Saint Catherine of Alexandria from the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum in Madrid, once part of the Barberini collection, and Martha and Mary Magdalene from the Detroit Institute of Arts.
A “dream” exhibition
“Each painting by Caravaggio is a star, and each loan is an extradition,” said Thomas Clement Salomon, director of Palazzo Barberini. He talked about the extraordinary effort behind securing these masterpieces. Salomon described the exhibition as a “dream” that was brought to life in record time; just one year.
Francesca Cappelletti, director of the Borghese Gallery, also underscored the significance of the show, highlighting “exceptional loans” such as David with the Head of Goliath.
As a special addition, visitors will have the rare opportunity to view a 25th Caravaggio masterwork—his only known mural painting, Jupiter, Neptune, and Pluto (1597)—at the nearby Casino dell’Aurora. This exceptional viewing is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to experience a different side of Caravaggio’s genius.
