During the Christmas season, Piacenza celebrates the 400th anniversary of the famous Farnese equestrian monuments with an exhibition hosted at Palabanca Eventi.
The exhibition is an important cultural event dedicated to Francesco Mochi, a leading figure in early Italian Baroque and creator of the iconic equestrian statues of Ranuccio I and Alessandro Farnese, symbols of Piazza dei Cavalli.
Piacenza e i suoi cavalli (Piacenza and its horses. Francesco Mochi and equestrian genius 1625–2025)
When: From 13 December 2025 to 18 January 2026
Where: Palabanca Eventi, Via Mazzini 14 – Piacenza
Opening hours
Tuesday to Friday: 4pm to 7pm
Saturday and Sunday: 10am to 1pm and 4pm to 7pm
Special openings
26 December
5 January
6 January (from 10 am to 1 pm and from 4 pm to 7 pm)
Closures
Every Monday
25 December
An exhibition journey through art and history
The exhibition offers different ways of enjoying it and is curated by Antonio Iommelli, director of the Civic Museums of Piacenza, in collaboration with NEO – Narrative Environments Operas in Milan.
The exhibition traces the genesis of the two equestrian sculptures, the historical and artistic context of their creation and the reasons that led to the choice of Francesco Mochi as their creator.
The celebration is part of the 400th anniversary of the inauguration of the monuments in 1625, highlighting their symbolic and artistic value in the panorama of Italian Baroque art.
Francesco Mochi: master of equestrian Baroque
Francesco Mochi (1580–1654) is considered one of the greatest exponents of early Italian Baroque. Trained in Florence by Santi di Tito and Camillo Mariani, he drew inspiration from the great Renaissance masters such as Donatello, Michelangelo and Giambologna.
His first masterpiece, the Annunciation in Orvieto Cathedral (1603–1608), marked the beginning of a highly successful career.
In 1612, he moved to Piacenza, where he created the famous equestrian monuments of Ranuccio I and Alessandro Farnese, now among the most iconic works of European monumental sculpture.
Returning to Rome in 1629, Mochi completed important commissions such as Saint Martha for the Barberini Chapel in Sant’Andrea della Valle, The Baptism of Christ (1634), now in Palazzo Braschi, and the monumental Saint Veronica (1640) for Saint Peter’s in the Vatican, considered the masterpiece of his artistic maturity.
