• Art & Culture

Five Art Refuges in the City

We can reveal some of the finest, most beautiful spaces that perhaps you did not know about

from IN-LOMBARDIA.IT

Every city has its hidden spots, where the dynamic nature and the hustle of daily living makes way for tranquillity and artistic contemplation. 

Everything changes in the city, continuously evolving and transforming. We don’t often find the time to stop and look at everything around us; we don’t always give art the opportunity to guide us through moments of peace and contemplation.

Lombardy has plenty of places to showcase art, culture and history; spaces where you can rediscover the pleasure of beautiful things, immersing yourselves in the historic atmospheres of ancient palazzos and the prestige of cultural institutions that have preserved their elegance over time. 

In the province's five capitals we can reveal some of the finest, most beautiful spaces that perhaps you did not know about, and where you can spend some time reading, walking through loggias or enjoying a coffee in a frescoed room.

Discover some of the region’s hidden cultural treasures.

Rotonda della Besana, Milan
To the north east of Milan the Rotonda della Besana stands out in its urban setting. This is a singular late-baroque building, where art and religious tourism come together. This fascinating, charming monument takes its name from the church - now deconsecrated - inside the brick portico. There was once a chapel in the centre of the burial area used for the dead from the Ospedale Maggiore, later converted to a church in 1695 and surrounded by a portico.

Read more
Biblioteca Teresiana, Mantua
Mantua's cultural treasures include the Biblioteca Teresiana, a library and an enchanting surprise amidst the city’s precious historic and literary heritage. It is just a stone’s throw from Piazza Dante, in the heart of the city and was founded in 1780 at the wishes of Maria Theresa of Austria, to whom the two sumptuous rooms of the library are dedicated. The first floor is home to the Palazzo degli Studi, a former Jesuit College, converted as part of the programme of cultural secularisation and reform of institutions by the Austrian empress.

Read more
Teatro Grande, Brescia
An artistic and cultural institution of great prestige, the Teatro Grande is a traditional opera treasure, with charming rooms and surprises to reveal. It stands on the very site where, in 1664, Brescia’s first public theatre was built, with the modern-day auditorium, built in 1810, from designs by architect Luigi Canonica and decorated by Girolamo Magnani in 1862. The stage still has part of its 19th-century structure and the boards have been trodden by some of the greatest artists in Italian opera.

Read more
Palazzo Bottigella Gandini, Pavia
Hidden among Pavia’s historic buildings is Palazzo Bottigella-Gandini, restored and now a space for contemporary art exhibitions. Pavia is a city just waiting to be explored, where you can lose yourselves in its cobbled streets and breathe in the atmosphere of its historic buildings. Very close to the Piazza del Municipio, a stone’s throw from the sumptuous structures that house the City Council we come to a large gateway looking onto the splendid Renaissance courtyard.

Read more
Chiostro di Sant'Agostino, Bergamo
The recently restored Chiostro Minore, the smaller cloister of the former Monastery of Sant’Agostino provides a space for dialogue and meeting in an artistic and spiritual setting. Visiting Upper Bergamo is always a good idea when you want to experience an atmosphere suspended in time. The numerous places consecrated to culture include the former Monastery of Sant’Agostino is a space to discover, with plenty to fascinate and enchant the visitor.

Read more

On the same topic

Show all

Museums Monza

From the Treasure of the Cathedral to the MEMB, there are many museums where you can discover local history, art and culture
Monza musei
  • Art & Culture

Milan in the 1920s: Déco and tradition

Milan in the 1920s: Déco and tradition
  • Art & Culture

Lorenzo Lotto Itinerary

In Bergamo on the trail of Lorenzo Lotto, one of the leading exponents of the Italian Renaissance
Lorenzo Lotto Itinerary, following his trails
  • Art & Culture

Museums Mantua

Indelible traces of a past full of history and emblematic characters. Museums tell us about the rich biography of the territory
Museums Mantua, cultural hubs in Lombardy
  • Art & Culture

Mario Baciocchi's footprints in Milan

A great architect....
  • Art & Culture

Online i modelli di Stradivari dell’MdV

On Google Arts & Culture!
  • Art & Culture

Seven castles in Lombardy

From Lake Garda to Valtellina by way of Milan. Among crenellated walls, towers and porticoed loggias
Castello Sforzesco a Milano
  • Art & Culture

Theaters Bergamo

The theatrical season of Bergamo accompanies us with a flourishing billboard of shows not to be missed
Theaters Bergamo, hints on visiting
  • Art & Culture

Monuments Monza

There are so many beauties to discover in the city that holds treasures not only in its Cathedral.
Monuments in Monza, culture in Lombardy
  • Art & Culture

Como by foot, by boat

A walk in Como between lake, neoclassical houses, a statue of Canova and a Grand Tour by boat
Villa Melzi D'Eril, Bellagio, Lago di Como
  • Art & Culture

The villages of the Lower Valtellina between adventure and relaxation

  • Art & Culture

Vaprio d adda

Halfway between Bergamo and Milan it is located on the border between the two provinces marked by the river Adda, on the Milanese side
Vaprio d'Adda
  • Art & Culture

Castles in Lombardy

The charm of Lombardy through its castles
Castles in Lombardy, Scenes from a Fairy Tale
  • Art & Culture

Lombardy's highest steeples and bell towers

There are four bell towers from which to admire the region's beautiful landscapes and squares, all of them over 90 metres high
Lombardy's highest steeples and bell towers
  • Art & Culture

The show is online in Lombardy

The show continues at home, in Lombardy. Discover the plays, films, concerts, videos and podcasts available for free online
The show is online in Lombardy
  • Art & Culture

Insider Mantua

Insider Mantua
  • Art & Culture

Tempio dell’Incoronata

A visit to the Tempio dell’Incoronata and the Museo del Tesoro
Tempio dell’Incoronata
  • Art & Culture

Lomello and its Christian buildings

Village of strategical importance since ancient times, here you can discover the great Romanesque Lombard architecture
Lomello and its Christian buildings
  • Art & Culture

Between ancient memories and majestic landscapes

Cultural itinerary in lower Valtellina
View of the village of Traona (Ph. Wikipedia)
  • Art & Culture

Nose up in the streets of Milan

We wander around the city observing plaques and inscriptions
  • Art & Culture