SOften we go to visit a museum attracted by the presence of a painting or a handful of paintings. But museums are treasure chests that collect thousands of objects, and with them they preserve thousands of stories. To give voice to these worlds, which certainly do not find space in normal audio guides or captions, the project was born Chest. Small stories of masterpieces. A series of podcasts made by Middle Chora for the Poldi Pezzoli Museum in Milan.
How many stories behind the works. The Casket of the Poldi Pezzoli Museum opens thanks to podcasts
An instrument, as others are being designed and imagined, to bring young generations closer to the museum experience in an immersive and non-traditional way. To enter into dialogue with works which, in the case of the Milanese house-museum, are many.
But among over 6 thousand objects including paintings and furniture, clocks and fans, mirrors and carpets, the standout work, the one for which everyone chooses to visit it, is the Portrait of lady of Piero del Pollaiolo (1470). «She is the icon of the museum, admits the director Alessandra Quarto. «Okay, it’s a work of inestimable value and once upon a time people even kissed it. But in our rooms there are many worlds, many stories that deserve to be told.”
The sonic intimacy of the podcast vs the “usual” museum audio guides
The project signed by the journalist and writer Silvia Nucini, who created it with the advice of two art historians, Maria Teresa Balboni and Marina Cammarata. It is divided into four different sound paths of approximately fifteen minutes on as many themes: travel, time, fashion and secrecy. The narration of each journey is entrusted to the authoritative voices of Chora Media: Mario Calabresi, Sara Poma, Luca Bizzarri and Francesca Milano.
The four routes are available at this Spotify link: you can also listen to them outside the museum, at home. To prepare for the visit or simply to enjoy the pleasure of the story. «Audio content can create intimacythis is its strength: a power not exploited at all by audio guides, which are usually cold and frankly poorly made”, explains Calabresi, CEO and Editor in Chief by Chora Media. Podcasts, or at least many podcasts, are popular precisely for their ability to take the listener into a distant world.
Who was Gian Giacomo Poldi Pezzoli and what works does his museum hold?
In this case, for example, it can be the world of the great collector Gian Giacomo Poldi Pezzoli as portrayed by Franceso Hayez in the painting, dated 1851, which welcomes visitors at the entrance to the exhibition centre. «His history is the history of this house-museum», explains Silvia Nucini. «The collection it hosts was born from the will of Gian Giacomo and its political aim is to celebrate Italy before Italy existed, preserving the wisdom of its artisans».
In addition to the famous paintings, from Botticelli to Piero della Francesca, from Bellini to Canaletto, from Mantegna to Tiepolo, the collection includes many curious objects. For example, i lover’s eye, the bijoux that portrayed the often secret gaze of the beloved. Shells from distant seas capable of igniting the imagination in the chamber of wonders of every European of the time. Or also Memento mori, which celebrated life through skulls and mournful elements. But also cabinets full of drawers and, it goes without saying, secrets.
The podcast paths of the project Chest therefore they are invitations to discover the hidden side of the most loved works, but also the worlds hidden behind those usually overlooked during visits, because its history is unknown. «We hope that listening can change something in people’s minds», says Quarto. «So that from now on, when they visit a museum, they can always be intrigued by the life and world behind the objects, both famous and otherwise».
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