Kiefer. The Women Alchemists
Palazzo Reale, Milan - Sala delle Cariatidi 
7 February - 27 September 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
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 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
Access to the Exhibition
Tickets for the exhibition can be purchased exclusively online, both for individual visitors and groups. If, during the day, unsold tickets are still available, it will be possible to purchase them at the physical ticket desk dedicated to the exhibition inside the Museo del Novecento in Milan, until capacity is reached. Free tickets may be collected directly on site, subject to verification of eligibility.
Opening Hours
Tuesday to Sunday: 10:00 – 19:30
Thursday: 10:00 – 22:30 (last admission one hour before closing)
Monday: closed
Holiday Opening Hours
Sunday 5 April 2026 (Easter): 10:00 – 19:30
Monday 6 April 2026 (Easter Monday): 10:00 – 19:30
Tuesday 2 June 2026 (Republic Day): 10:00 – 19:30
Saturday 15 August 2026 (Ferragosto): 10:00 – 19:30
Tickets
€17.00 — Open Ticket
Includes free audio guide or QR-code; also available at the ticket office
(valid from three hours after purchase/booking).
€15.00 — Full Price Ticket
Includes free audio guide or QR-code.
€13.00 — Reduced Ticket
For groups (15–25 people), visitors aged 6–26, visitors over 65, Touring Club members, FAI members, holders of tickets linked to the initiative “Monday at the Museums,” military personnel, off-duty law enforcement, teachers, holders of the Feltrinelli LAEde card, employees and clients of Banca BPER, employees and clients of Banca IFIS and affiliated companies.
Includes free audio guide or QR-code.
€12.00 — Milano Museo Card Holders
€10.00 — Student Ticket
Maximum age: 25 years.
Includes free audio guide or QR-code.
€7.50 × 2 — Special 2×1 Reduced Ticket
For Unipol employees and clients.
€6.00 — Special Reduced Ticket
For primary and secondary school groups, FAI and TCI groups, registered journalists with a valid annual ODG card, City of Milan employees with badge (one accompanying guest pays €12), Civil Service volunteers operating within the City of Milan.
Includes free audio guide or QR-code.
Family Ticket
€10 per adult / €6 per child (ages 6–14)
For 1 or 2 adults + children.
Free Admission
For visitors with 100% disability and one accompanying person, children under 6, licensed tour guides, one group escort, two escorts for school groups, one escort and one guide for Touring Club and FAI groups, employees of the Soprintendenza, ICOM members, employees of the Palazzo Reale Exhibitions and Scientific Museums Department, members of the Safety Commission and Fire Brigade.
Includes free audio guide or QR-code.
Journalists
Journalists visiting the exhibition for professional purposes may access free of charge by collecting their ticket at the “reserved” desk, after requesting accreditation from the press office at least two days before the visit (indicating publication and date).
Otherwise, admission is €6.00 (special reduced rate) upon presenting a valid ODG card.
Disposable Earphones
€2.00 (1 euro per earphone)
Pre-sale Fees
€2.00
€1.00 for school groups
Groups and Reservations
The validity of online tickets, including Open Tickets, begins three hours after purchase/booking.
Open Tickets may also be purchased at the exhibition for €17.00, with no additional fees.
Information and Reservations
Ad Artem
info@adartem.it
+39 02 6597728
(9:00–13:00, 14:00–16:00, Monday to Friday)
www.adartem.it
Vivaticket Call Center
+39 02 91446111
Monday to Friday: 09:00 – 18:00
Saturday: 09:00 – 13:00
Educational
INFO AND RESERVATIONSAd Artem
info@adartem.it
tel extension. + 39 02 6597728
Vivaticket Call Center
tel extension. + 39 02 91446111
Monday to Friday 09.00 – 18.00
Saturday 09.00 – 13.00
News and Events
Privat events
Press
Press OfficeItalian Press
Marsilio Arte | Giovanna Ambrosano: +39 338 4546387; g.ambrosano@
International Press
Giovanni Maria Sgrignuoli: +39 328 9686390; giovanni@gmspress.com
Comune di Milano – Cultura
Responsabile Comunicazione: Elena Conenna elenamaria.conenna@comune.
Ufficio Stampa: Silvia Egiziano silvia.egiziano@comune.milano.
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