GIUSEPPE ZANARDELLI (1826-1903) Statesman, jurist, and man of letters

16 may 2026 - 15:30

15 november 2026 - 18:00

Ateneo di Brescia, Accademia di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti

Two hundred years after his birth, Brescia pays tribute to the most important statesman the city has ever produced, highlighting his contribution to the development of liberal Italy, the modernization of the legal system, and the broader political, economic, and social progress of the country.

+39 03041006

ateneobs@ateneo.brescia.it

The exhibition

Curated by: Roberta D’Adda, Valerio Terraroli

Promoted by: Ateneo di Scienze, Lettere e Arti di Brescia, Fondazione Brescia Musei, Alleanza Cultura, Fondazione Ugo Da Como

Under the patronage of: Ministero della Giustizia

Ateneo di Scienze, Lettere e Arti di Brescia, Fondazione Brescia Musei e Fondazione Ugo Da Como are members of the Rete dell’800 Lombardo

Two hundred years after his birth, Brescia pays tribute to Giuseppe Zanardelli (1826–1903), the city’s most prominent statesman, through an exhibition that goes beyond presenting a collection of images to reflect on how Zanardelli’s complex image was constructed and conveyed, highlighting the constant interplay between his political life, cultural sensibilities, and personal life.

Ettore Ximenes, Busto di Giuseppe Zanardelli, 1900 circa, marmo, Ateneo di Brescia Accademia di Scienze Lettere e Arti

Ettore Ximenes, Giuseppe Zanardelli oratore, 1897, bronzo, Museo Civici di Brescia

Odoardo Tabacchi, Progetto del monumento ad Arnaldo da Brescia, 1880 circa, Fondazione Ugo Da Como, Fotostudio Rapuzzi

9 Franz von Lenbach, Ritratto di Eleonoda Duse, 1885, pastello su carta, Musei Civici di Brescia

Emilio Pasini, Ritratto di Giuseppe Zanardelli, 1900 circa, olio su cartone, Musei Civici di Brescia

The exhibition project

The exhibition begins with a focus on the relationship between Zanardelli and the sculptor Ettore Ximenes (1855–1926), a central figure in shaping his public image: Ximenes’s sculptures present a deliberate and carefully crafted portrayal of the statesman, in which gesture, posture, and expressive intensity visually convey his political presence.

Giuseppe Zanardelli was, after all, also a true architect of the construction of national memory through the erection of commemorative monuments still standing in the city today: from the one dedicated to Moretto to that of Arnaldo da Brescia, chosen as a symbol of freedom of thought and secular tradition. In the exhibition, this theme is complemented, through graphic and photographic documents, by the phenomenon of the widespread proliferation of monuments dedicated to Zanardelli, such as the one designed by Davide Calandra for the city center and the one created by Leonardo Bistolfi in Maderno sul Garda.

The exploration of the construction of public image continues both in the section dedicated to period press clippings and illustrations—in which Giuseppe Zanardelli was the focus of constant media attention—and in the selection of volumes that belonged to the statesman and were part of his personal library, which comprised nearly twenty thousand books. Among these, of particular note is ‘Il nuovo Codice Penale Italiano illustrato colla bibliografia e colla giurisprudenza formatasi dal gennaio 1890 al luglio 1895 coordinate articolo per articolo (The New Italian Penal Code, illustrated with a bibliography and case law compiled from January 1890 to July 1895, organized article by article), with an autographed dedication by Giovanni Luschi to Zanardelli, the father of the first unified criminal code for the Kingdom of Italy.

The exhibition is rounded out by two sections that take visitors into a more intimate setting: the display of some of the furnishings from Zanardelli’s residence in Maderno —designed by Antonio Tagliaferri, one of the leading figures in Brescian architecture in the second half of the 19th century—and a selection of memorabilia—ranging from photographs with autographed dedications by his illustrious contemporaries, to images of his famous trip to Basilicata, to letters addressed to his friend Ettore Ximenes, and even a portrait of Eleonora Duse painted by the Munich-based artist Franz von Lenbach.