New Exhibition at Certosa di Firenze Celebrates 800 Years of Saint Francis

A new exhibition at the Certosa di Firenze is set to mark the 800th anniversary of Saint Francis of Assisi in 2026 with a thoughtful art project inspired by the Canticle of the Creatures. Running from April 26 to May 24, 2026, the show brings together works by Serena Nono and Nicola Golea inside one of the most atmospheric historic sites on the southern edge of Florence.

Titled Altissimu, onnipotente, bon Signore. Il Cantico delle Creature e il fiore della mistica francescana. Omaggio a san Francesco d’Assisi | 1226–2026, the exhibition will be held in the Pinacoteca di Pontormo at the Certosa di Firenze in Galluzzo. The opening is scheduled for Sunday, April 26, 2026, at 5:30 PM.

An exhibition inspired by Saint Francis and the Canticle of the Creatures

The project takes its inspiration from the Canticle of the Creatures, one of the best-known texts associated with Saint Francis. Eight hundred years after the saint’s death, the exhibition turns that spiritual and poetic legacy into a visual dialogue shaped by painting, silence, landscape, and contemplation.

The opening event will include pianist Francesca Breschi and harpist Andrea Solinas, accompanying readings from the Canticle of the Creatures, texts by female mystics in the Franciscan tradition, and selected Laudi from the Laudario di Cortona. That combination already gives a clear sense of the exhibition’s tone. This is not a purely decorative show, but a reflective one, built around spirituality, fragility, beauty, and interior life.

The project also draws on the voices of major women mystics including Catherine of Siena, Bridget of Sweden, Margaret of Cortona, Angela of Foligno, Clare of Assisi, and Simone Weil. That wider spiritual frame gives the exhibition a richer dimension and makes it more than a simple tribute to Saint Francis alone.

Why the setting at the Certosa di Firenze matters

This exhibition is also a good reason to visit the Certosa di Firenze if you have not been yet. Located in Galluzzo, just outside Florence’s historic center, the Certosa is one of those places that many visitors overlook, even though it offers a very different atmosphere from the city’s busier museum circuit.

The exhibition’s location inside the Pinacoteca di Pontormo adds to its appeal. The setting feels especially fitting for a show centered on mysticism, prayer, nature, and inward reflection. For travelers who enjoy art in places with a strong historical and spiritual identity, this is the kind of exhibition that can easily become the centerpiece of a half-day outing.

It is also worth noting that the Certosa itself has an entrance ticket and includes guided visits, so a trip here can become a broader cultural experience rather than just a quick stop for a temporary show.

Saint Francis and his connection to Florence

One of the most interesting aspects of the exhibition is that it also pays tribute to Saint Francis’s documented presence in Florence. According to the source material, he is known to have been in the city at least four times during the last fifteen years of his life.

He was in Florence in 1211, when he stopped at the Ospizio di Santa Maria dei Magnoli, today known as Santa Lucia dei Magnoli. He returned in 1213 while preaching between Tuscany and Romagna, and it was during that visit that he met Messer Orlando Cattanei, Count of Chiusi in Casentino, who donated Mount La Verna to him. La Verna would later become one of the most important places in Franciscan history.

Saint Francis was also in Florence in 1217, when he met Cardinal Ugolino for the first time. Ugolino would later become Pope Gregory IX and canonize him in 1228. His final documented visit mentioned in the exhibition material dates to 1221, when, according to tradition, he caused a spring of water to flow from the ground near the Poor Clares monastery by today’s Via di San Vito. The site is still known as the Fonte di San Francesco.

For travelers interested in the spiritual history of Tuscany, that connection gives the exhibition an extra layer. It is not simply a show about Franciscan themes. It is also rooted in Florence’s own link to Saint Francis.

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The artists: Serena Nono and Nicola Golea

Serena Nono and Nicola Golea live and work in Venice and have collaborated on a number of artistic and film projects. Both paint figures, portraits, and landscapes, but with distinct sensibilities.

Serena Nono is especially associated with figures and portraits, sometimes marked by a mystical tension, and she has also worked extensively in sacred art.

Nicola Golea’s landscapes express a sense of wonder before the eloquence and scale of nature, while his portraits aim to reveal the inner life of the people he paints.

Their previous joint exhibitions include Cantico in Venice in 2025, Tu sei Bellezza. Mistica e Creazione in Assisi in 2025, Finding Fioretta in Venice in 2022, and Senza poesia in Venice and Milan in 2020. Serena Nono also took part in the Italian Pavilion at the 2011 Venice Biennale. The two artists have collaborated in film as well, including Venezia salva and Sventura.

Visiting information

Exhibition: Altissimu, onnipotente, bon Signore. Il Cantico delle Creature e il fiore della mistica francescana. Omaggio a san Francesco d’Assisi | 1226–2026
Artists: Serena Nono and Nicola Golea
Dates: April 26 to May 24, 2026
Opening: Sunday, April 26, 2026 at 5:30 PM
Venue: Pinacoteca di Pontormo, Certosa di Firenze, Via della Certosa 1, Galluzzo, Florence
Exhibition admission: Free

Exhibition hours:
Tuesday to Saturday: 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM and 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM
Sunday: 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM

The Certosa di Firenze is open daily except Mondays and Sunday mornings, from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM and from 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM. Admission to the Certosa costs 5 euros, and that price includes a guided visit, offered every day except Mondays and Sunday mornings at 10:00 AM, 11:00 AM, 3:00 PM, and 4:00 PM.

Phone: +39 055 2047729
Website: certosadifirenze.it