National Bargello Museum in Florence (April – July 2009)
J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles ( November 2008 - March 2009)
National Gallery in Canadá, Ottawa (August 2008 - Marzo 2009)
After the exhibition Bernini and the Birth of Baroque Portrait Sculpture, organized by the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles and After the Bernini and the Birth of Baroque Portrait Sculpture exhibition in Los Angeles and Ottawa, Florence honored Bernini’s mastery in portraiture at the Museo Nazionale del Bargello with the bust of Costanza Bonarelli. This exhibition focused on Bernini’s early portraits, divided into two parts: his beginnings and the expressive “Speaking Portraits” (1630–1640). It also featured works by contemporary painters to show Bernini’s artistic dialogue and inspiration, along with paintings of Urban VIII and Bernini’s self-portrait, highlighting his talent as a portraitist in both sculpture and painting.
The Florence exhibition emphasized Bernini’s most important period of portraiture, featuring masterpieces like the bust of Costanza Bonarelli and portraits of Urban VIII, Scipione Borghese, and other papal figures. It also highlighted Giuliano Finelli, Bernini’s pupil, showcasing his finest works including the Bust of Maria Barberini Duglioli, and portraits of Francesco Bracciolini and Michelangelo Buonarroti the Younger