Wanted in Rome DEC 2021

EXHIBITIONS
From 6 December museums
and archaeological sites in
Rome are open only to visitors
who show proof that they have
been vaccinated or recovered
in the last six months from
covid-19, under Italy's new socalled
Super Green Pass system.
Access will no longer be given
to those who provide a negative
covid test alone (as per the
“basic” Green Pass system which
changes after 5 December).
Most venues require advance
booking and the wearing of
masks is obligatory. Weekend
visits to the more popular sites
such as the Colosseum and
the Pantheon must be booked
at least one day ahead. For
visiting details check websites
in advance.
100 PRESEPI
5 DEC-9 JAN
This year’s edition of 100 Presepi,
Rome’s international Nativity crib
exhibition, takes place under the
colonnade of St Peter’s Square. A
firm fixture on Rome’s Christmas
calendar, each year 100 Presepi hosts
some Nativity scenes from across
Italy and dozens of other countries.
In addition to contemporary
replicas of traditional 18th-century
Neapolitan and Sicilian cribs, and
100 Presepi at St Peter's Square.
Caravaggio and Artemisia exhibition at Palazzo Barberini.
19th-century Roman mangers, there
are modern versions made from
wood, papier-mâché and terracotta,
as well as unconventional materials
such as sand, rice and metal. Now
in its 46th year, 100 Presepi was
established in Rome in 1976 and
took place in Piazza del Popolo until
four years ago. Today it is organised
by the Vatican’s Pontifical Council
for the Promotion of the New
Evangelisation. For visiting details
see website, www.100presepi.it.
CARAVAGGIO AND ARTEMISIA
26 NOV-27 MARCH
Caravaggio and Artemisia: Judith’s
challenge. Violence and seduction in
painting between the 16th and 17th
centuries is the title of a new exhibition
at Palazzo Barberini. The show
takes as it starting point Judith who
decapitates Holofernes in Caravaggio’s
masterpiece which was rediscovered
70 years ago before being acquired
by the Italian state. Evaluating the
impact the powerful painting has had
on the art world over the centuries,
the exhibition comprises 31 works,
mostly large format, from important
national and international institutions,
including the Prado and the Thyssen
Museum in Madrid, the Capodimonte
Museum in Naples and Rome’s the
Borghese Gallery in Rome. The show
is curated by Maria Cristina Terzaghi
and features works by artists including
Orazio and Artemisia Gentileschi,
Valentin de Boulogne, Pietro Novelli,
Mattia Preti and Giuseppe Vermiglio.
Palazzo Barberini, Via delle Quattro
Fontane 13, www.barberinicorsini.org.
ANTONIETTA RAPHAEL
17 NOV-30 JAN
The Galleria Nazionale d’Arte
Moderna (GNAM) presents Through the
Looking Glass, an exhibition dedicated
to Antonietta Raphaël (Kaunas 1895
– Rome 1975), the Lithuanian- born
artist who was a leading exponent of
the Scuola Romana movement. The
show comprises paintings, sculptures
and works on paper, accompanied by
documents, family photographs, letters
30 | December 2021 • Wanted in Rome