David Hockney meets Beato Angelico at the Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella
A dialogue between ancient and contemporary on the occasion of the Beato Angelico exhibition at Palazzo Strozzi and the Museo di San Marco
4' min read
4' min read
From 26 September 2025, Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella presents, in its historical spaces in Florence, Annunciation II, After Fra Angelico (2017), a monumental work by the famous British artist David Hockney: a direct dialogue between one of the most important masters of contemporary art and Beato Angelico, the protagonist of the great exhibition running in parallel at Palazzo Strozzi and the Museo di San Marco.
David Hockney, draughtsman and experimenter, has renewed the figurative language with works ranging from Pop Art to the most recent digital explorations.
The work Annunciation II, After Fra Angelico - installed in the sacristy frescoed by the Florentine Gothic artist Mariotto di Nardo in the historic building at Via della Scala 16 in Florence - is a contemporary reinterpretation of the famous Annunciation frescoed by Beato Angelico around 1440 in the Dominican convent of San Marco in Florence. Inside a large painting more than 2 metres wide, the English artist applies his unique style to re-imagine in reverse perspective a masterpiece such as Beato Angelico's Annunciation, which Hockney had known since he was a child thanks to a poster hanging in the corridor of his primary school. The result is both homage and challenge: a tribute to the Angelic subject and, at the same time, a break with the perspective conventions of the Renaissance.
The choice of exhibition venue emphasises a deep historical connection: when the Dominican friar Beato Angelico made his Annunciation in San Marco, the Dominican community of Santa Maria Novella had already been active for centuries. Founded in 1221 in Florence, Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella is the oldest pharmacy in the world, with more than 800 years of uninterrupted activity.
Its legacy in the apothecary's art is deeply interwoven with the history, characters and social fabric of Florence, in a continuous alchemy of stories and wonders. From the formulas preserved in the manuscripts of the Dominican friars to the fragrances that span the centuries, each preparation reflects an ancient knowledge that has been able to renew itself while preserving authenticity and that for over eight centuries has been a living testimony of Italian savoir-faire throughout the world.
