LeonardoFrom The Last Supper in Milan to a permanent museum in China.
From the first project in 2015 to a permanent base in ChinaThe story →
ProjectLeonardo da Vinci Museum, Sanya · Hainan
Scheduled opening2027
Amalart's roleMuseological and curatorial direction
In collaboration withMuseo Leonardo da Vinci, Florence · Collezione Niccolai
01 / The development
One work. An exhibition format. An institution.
Amalart's work on Leonardo develops in stages. Each project leads to the next, turning a temporary experience into a permanent presence.
One work
In Milan, The Last Supper was presented to audiences through a new narrative, first in Via Vivaio and then at Expo. The exhibition project →
An exhibition format
The scope broadened. The narrative approach developed around The Last Supper became a travelling exhibition on Leonardo's life, work and method. “Nel segno del Genio”, presented at the Museo Leonardo da Vinci in Florence in July 2021, established the relationship with the Collezione Niccolai. The fifteen machines for Sanya come from this collection.
An institution
In Sanya, the project takes a permanent form: a museum, the Leonardo da Vinci Study Centre and sustained work between Italy and China.
Sanya is where work begun in 2015 becomes a permanent institution.
02 / Amalart's project
Leonardo as a method.
The museum begins with Leonardo's working method: observing nature, testing ideas and bringing art and science together as ways of understanding the world. This is the basis of Amalart's museological project for Sanya.
Verrocchio's workshop · Project visualisation
01
Develop the narrative
Define the concept, the sequence of the visitor journey and the relationship between works, machines, sources and digital content.
02
Give each medium a purpose
Physical reconstructions, facsimiles, films, light and sound accompany the objects without replacing them. The nature of each material remains recognisable.
03
Design for Sanya
Developed through dialogue with Chinese partners, the narrative gives local audiences a way into Leonardo's world that also draws on their own history.
04
Bring expertise together
Amalart coordinates the people responsible for the content, specialists and Italian and Chinese partners, preserving clear responsibilities and attribution.
“Auguri Maestro” · Giunti Odeon, Florence · 18 April 2026. Event organised by the Museo Leonardo da Vinci in Florence.
Verrocchio's workshop · Project visualisation
03 / Museological choicesChoice 01
The Silk Road.
Before introducing Leonardo, the museum presents the world he lived in. Two parallel timelines cover 1452–1519: Italy and Europe on one side, China and Hainan on the other.
The two histories sit alongside each other without forced parallels. Chinese visitors can recognise their own history as they enter Leonardo's time.
The Silk Road · Project visualisation
The Last Supper in Sanya · Project visualisation
Choice 02
Returning to The Last Supper.
In Sanya, The Last Supper returns as a spatial experience: a place to pause before the work and, at other times, to host cultural gatherings.
Twelve years after the Milan project, the work that began Amalart's approach becomes part of a permanent museum.
04 / Florence and the Codices
Sources take form.
Fifteen machines from the Collezione Niccolai of the Museo Leonardo da Vinci in Florence, built from Leonardo's drawings, are presented alongside facsimiles of the Codices and digital content.
Sanya brings this heritage into an independent project developed for Chinese audiences, rather than reproducing the Florence museum.
Clear responsibilities. Amalart is responsible for museological and curatorial direction.
Museo Leonardo da Vinci, FlorenceCollezione Niccolai
Machine reconstructed from a drawing by Leonardo · Collezione NiccolaiFacsimile of a CodexMuseo Leonardo da Vinci, Florence · Collezione Niccolai
05 / The Study Centre and its audiences
The museum continues beyond the visit.
Open from the museum's launch, the Study Centre brings together complete facsimiles of the Codices, selected examples of which appear in the museum, and a library dedicated to Leonardo.
It is a place for research, education and cultural production. Scholars, schools and universities continue to develop knowledge beyond the visitor experience.
Families and young peopleSchoolsTouristsScholars
06 / The project today
A permanent base in Sanya.
Scheduled opening: 2027 Lvwen Sanya HQ Port, Building A5, 10 Dong'an 1st Road, Jiyang, Sanya, Hainan, China
The museum, the Study Centre and Salotto Italia–Cina, an Italian cultural salon in Sanya, share a building and a common origin, with different functions. Co-founded by Amalart with Chinese partners, the Salotto sustains dialogue between companies and institutions in both countries.
Sanya · Photograph of the complexThe museum building during construction · Sanya
The Last Supper in Sanya · Project visualisation
