The Italy of the first Italians

Through an extraordinary selection of about eighty masterpieces made between the early 1860s and the first decade of the 20th century, The Italy of the first Italians offers a vibrant fresco of our young nation, of its landscapes and its inhabitants, restoring the complexity of an era marked by major political, economic, cultural and social transformations.

The exhibition itinerary is developed in seven thematic sections, hosted in the evocative halls of the Castle of Novara, and proposes a pictorial narrative that reflects the progressive construction of Italian identity. It begins with the rural life in lowland and mountain territories, crossing the dimension marine of the peninsula, up to the face of cities and the birth of a modern bourgeoisie, between everyday life, leisure and holiday.

An entire section is dedicated to the relationship between women and art, while another sensitively addresses the issue of the’venal love, revealing a raw and underrepresented cross-section of the 19th century. The tour concludes with a look at the “modern times” and life in the industrial metropolises, places of strong social contrasts but also of innovation and growth.

On show are works by masters such as Telemaco Signorini, Giuseppe De Nittis, Giovanni Fattori, Francesco Paolo Michetti, Angelo Morbelli, Emilio Longoni, along with many other protagonists of Italian painting of the time. The exhibition, curated by Elisabetta Chiodini, is organised by METS, Municipality of Novara e Novara Castle Foundation, with the patronage of important institutions and the support of numerous private sponsors.

🎟️ Tariff detail

• Whole: €15,00
• Open: €17.00 - free date ticket, with flexible entry
• Reduced: €13.00 - valid on weekends and public holidays
• Weekday reduced: €11.00 - valid from Tuesday to Friday (excluding public holidays)

🎫 Conventions:
Input free with Subscription Museums Piedmont e Formula Extra | Reduced with Subscription Museums Lombardy