Kiefer. The Women Alchemists
Palazzo Reale, Milan - Sala delle Cariatidi 
from 7 February 2026
The exhibition
Un tributo monumentale alle alchimiste dimenticate: a Palazzo Reale arriva la nuova opera site-specific di Anselm Kiefer, uno dei più influenti artisti contemporanei a livello internazionale. Questa mostra, appositamente concepita per la Sala delle Cariatidi, inviterà i visitatori a interagire con opere che riflettono su storia, pittura e memoria femminile.Promossa da Comune di Milano-Cultura e prodotta da Palazzo Reale e Marsilio Arte, con il contributo di Gagosian e Galleria Lia Rumma e con il sostegno dei Main Sponsor Unipol e Banca Ifis, l’esposizione rientra nel programma culturale dei Giochi Olimpici invernali di Milano Cortina 2026. Curata dalla storica dell’arte Gabriella Belli, sarà allestita nella Sala delle Cariatidi di Palazzo Reale a Milano dal 7 febbraio fino a settembre 2026.
Un’opera site-specific per la Sala delle Cariatidi
Le Alchimiste presenta un ciclo di trentotto grandi teleri, concepiti appositamente per dialogare con la drammatica bellezza della Sala delle Cariatidi: un ambiente maestoso segnato dalle ferite del bombardamento del 1943, capace ancora oggi di evocare un passato di splendore e rovina. Dopo aver eccezionalmente accolto nel 1953 il capolavoro di Picasso Guernica, la Sala delle Cariatidi ha ospitato nel corso degli anni mostre e progetti di artisti eccezionali.
Photo by Paolo Pellegrin
Photo by Paolo Pellegrin
Women and alchemy
The project’s link with the city of Milan is special, where Caterina Sforza lived during her youth, daughter of Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan, scientist, leader and author of a rare manuscript containing more than 400 recipes for medicines, cosmetics and alchemical formulas. Kiefer voices her and several other female alchemists, mostly forgotten from official history. If some of these female figures –such as Caterina Sforza, Isabella Cortese, Mary Judea – are known to the general public, other names, such as that of Marie Meudrac, Rebecca Vaughan, Mary Anne Atwood, Anne Marie Ziegler, are rather unknown. Through his material and strongly symbolic painting, the German artist makes visible what has been buried: faces and bodies that emerge from his canvases as apparitions, revealing a world of persecuted, hidden, but fundamental female intelligences for the birth of modern scientific thought. Since the beginning of Anselm Kiefer’s career in the early 1970s, a recurring theme in his work has been the depiction of the creative and redemptive powers of women in history.
The project’s link with the city of Milan is special, where Caterina Sforza lived during her youth, daughter of Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan, scientist, leader and author of a rare manuscript containing more than 400 recipes for medicines, cosmetics and alchemical formulas. Kiefer voices her and several other female alchemists, mostly forgotten from official history. If some of these female figures –such as Caterina Sforza, Isabella Cortese, Mary Judea – are known to the general public, other names, such as that of Marie Meudrac, Rebecca Vaughan, Mary Anne Atwood, Anne Marie Ziegler, are rather unknown. Through his material and strongly symbolic painting, the German artist makes visible what has been buried: faces and bodies that emerge from his canvases as apparitions, revealing a world of persecuted, hidden, but fundamental female intelligences for the birth of modern scientific thought. Since the beginning of Anselm Kiefer’s career in the early 1970s, a recurring theme in his work has been the depiction of the creative and redemptive powers of women in history.
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A monumental tribute to forgotten alchemists: the new site-specific work by Anselm Kiefer conceived specifically for the Sala delle Cariatidi.
A reflection between history, painting and female memory.
Le Alchimiste presents a cycle of thirty-eight large canvases, specifically designed to dialogue with the dramatic beauty of the Sala delle Cariatidi: a majestic environment marked by the wounds of the bombing of 1943, still capable of evoking a past of splendor and ruin. After exceptionally welcoming Picasso Guernica’s masterpiece in 1953, the Hall of Caryatids has hosted exhibitions and projects by exceptional artists over the years.
A reflection between history, painting and female memory.
Le Alchimiste presents a cycle of thirty-eight large canvases, specifically designed to dialogue with the dramatic beauty of the Sala delle Cariatidi: a majestic environment marked by the wounds of the bombing of 1943, still capable of evoking a past of splendor and ruin. After exceptionally welcoming Picasso Guernica’s masterpiece in 1953, the Hall of Caryatids has hosted exhibitions and projects by exceptional artists over the years.
The Exhibition
Un tributo monumentale alle alchimiste dimenticate: a Palazzo Reale arriva la nuova opera site-specific di Anselm Kiefer, uno dei più influenti artisti contemporanei a livello internazionale. Questa mostra, appositamente concepita per la Sala delle Cariatidi, inviterà i visitatori a interagire con opere che riflettono su storia, pittura e memoria femminile.Promossa da Comune di Milano-Cultura e prodotta da Palazzo Reale e Marsilio Arte, con il contributo di Gagosian e Galleria Lia Rumma e con il sostegno dei Main Sponsor Unipol e Banca Ifis, l’esposizione rientra nel programma culturale dei Giochi Olimpici invernali di Milano Cortina 2026. Curata dalla storica dell’arte Gabriella Belli, sarà allestita nella Sala delle Cariatidi di Palazzo Reale a Milano dal 7 febbraio fino a settembre 2026.
Un’opera site-specific per la Sala delle Cariatidi
Le Alchimiste presenta un ciclo di trentotto grandi teleri, concepiti appositamente per dialogare con la drammatica bellezza della Sala delle Cariatidi: un ambiente maestoso segnato dalle ferite del bombardamento del 1943, capace ancora oggi di evocare un passato di splendore e rovina. Dopo aver eccezionalmente accolto nel 1953 il capolavoro di Picasso Guernica, la Sala delle Cariatidi ha ospitato nel corso degli anni mostre e progetti di artisti eccezionali.
Photo by Paolo Pellegrin
Photo by Paolo Pellegrin
The project’s link with the city of Milan is special, where Caterina Sforza lived during her youth, daughter of Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan, scientist, leader and author of a rare manuscript containing more than 400 recipes for medicines, cosmetics and alchemical formulas. Kiefer voices her and several other female alchemists, mostly forgotten from official history. If some of these female figures –such as Caterina Sforza, Isabella Cortese, Mary Judea – are known to the general public, other names, such as that of Marie Meudrac, Rebecca Vaughan, Mary Anne Atwood, Anne Marie Ziegler, are rather unknown. Through his material and strongly symbolic painting, the German artist makes visible what has been buried: faces and bodies that emerge from his canvases as apparitions, revealing a world of persecuted, hidden, but fundamental female intelligences for the birth of modern scientific thought. Since the beginning of Anselm Kiefer’s career in the early 1970s, a recurring theme in his work has been the depiction of the creative and redemptive powers of women in history.
Plan your visit
How to access the exhibitionEntrance tickets to the exhibition can be purchased exclusively online, both for individual visitors and for groups.
If non-purchased tickets are still available during the day, it will be possible to proceed with the purchase at the physical point of sale dedicated to the exhibition inside the Museo del Novecento in Milan, until the capacity is exhausted.
Free tickets can instead be collected directly on site, subject to verification of eligibility requirements.
Educational
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