A new lighting system for Michelangelo’s La Pietà

6 years after the first lighting system was created for La Pietà by iGuzzini, the company has returned to enhance this wonderful artwork, which was also the very young Michelangelo’s first ever sculpture. 
Following a series of works carried out for the 2025 Jubilee, it became necessary to renew the lighting inside the Chapel of the Crucifix that houses the sculpture, and the Fabric of Saint Peter turned to iGuzzini once again. 

The Chapel in which Michelangelo's La Pietà is located recently underwent a series of improvements focused on various elements. The most obvious intervention involved replacing the protective glass window made in 1973 to protect the sculpture that had been damaged by a vandalistic hammer attack on May 21st 1972. Replacing it, after fifty years, had become necessary for both static and aesthetic reasons, linked to the naturally opaque quality of the material. The sculpture’s new protection system, designed by a team of Italian experts after extensive research, features a diaphragm equipped with a high-tech anchoring system, consisting of nine shatter-resistant and bulletproof glass panels of the highest quality and transparency. This will ensure the artwork is better protected and more visible.  
For the same reasons, all the glass panels in the large arched window on the wall behind La Pieta were replaced with new components that offer higher mechanical performance and more importantly, filter light to avoid creating reflections on the diaphragm. 

Lighting La Pietà 
As a result of works conducted for the 2025 Jubilee, the lighting system that had been active since 2018 was dismantled, at which point iGuzzini was again approached and the lighting designers suggested using the new Sipario floodlight that is specifically designed and produced for installation in cultural heritage contexts.  
All the versions of the luminaire have CRI97 and Step Mac Adam 2 features to enhance every nuance of what is being viewed and maintain it over time, a feature that is fundamental when lighting artworks.  
The option of mounting up to three internal and one external accessory simultaneously as well as the Push&Go system (patent pending) make on-site testing extremely easy. And the luminaire’s manual dimmers and graduated bracket offer further fine-tuning to ensure a truly perfect effect. The Push&Go system is activated by a single lever which, with a simple touch, prevents the optical elements and multiple accessories from falling. 
Sipario also allows main wireless technologies to be used even with Casambi and ORT sensors, as well as offering smart services, like push notifications. 
Inside Saint Peter's Basilica, DALI protocol-based wired technology has been used to manage the system. 

The lighting design 
For this project that uses a new luminaire, the Lighting Designers Guido Bianchi and Nicoletta Rossi were once again commissioned to test its implementation and ensure the new system complied with the project they perfected in 2018. This sought to create a consistent overall vision that would allow visitors to see and enjoy at length the expressive intensity of every detail in this masterpiece. This required a measured and composed lighting design that would illuminate the contours of the sculpture and the glow of the marble. 
In this case too, the Sipario floodlights, all DALI-controlled, are divided into groups that can be switched on separately. This means the levels of light intensity emitted can be calibrated in order to create different lighting scenarios in line with a range of visual requirements and tasks that may change over time. Everything is managed by a KNX control system. The luminaires are positioned on vertically installed electrified tracks located on either side of the pilasters facing the sculpture as well as on the cornices, and the 4 cardinal point scenarios in the previous design have been re-created. 

The North - sculpture focus - scenario is created by track-mounted Sipario floodlights mounted on the side of the pilasters. There is no overriding directionality and the balance of the chiaroscuro effects enhances the sculpture’s plasticity. Visitors can appreciate every individual detail while also enjoying a sense of overall harmony. The central vault, featuring frescoes by Giovanni Lanfranco, is also evenly lit with values that gradually decrease towards the capitals. The arches and lateral barrel vaults are illuminated homogeneously with less intense light. The Crucifix is illuminated diagonally by a projector mounted on the cornice, at a considerable distance. 

The East - light blade - scenario is a narrow beam of light that illuminates the sculpture with a light blade effect from a floodlight mounted on the lateral capital on the east of the sculpture. The incidence angle is clear and there is a sharp contrast with the surrounding shadow. The recumbent face of the Virgin Mary is also illuminated by a soft upward beam of light. The subdued lighting of the vaults and backdrop creates a frame around the sculpture, and vibrant reflections enhance the gleam of the marble with a striking visual effect that has a strong emotional impact. 

The South - full light - scenario is designed for special events and activities which require higher lighting values that allow the sculpture to be seen clearly from the central nave of the Basilica. Compared to the previous scenarios, the lighting of the central vault, arches and lateral vaults is more sustained. Frontal floodlights also enhance the light grazing effect. The altar is bathed in soft light. The Crucifix is highlighted from above by a Sipario floodlight with a 28° optic positioned far enough away to avoid any shadow effects.  

The West - daily light - scenario uses track-mounted projectors with 10° optics mounted on the side of the pilasters. Their beams crisscross at symmetrical angles to highlight the sculpture’s plasticity. The background, illuminated from the bottom up, balances the contrasts. The central vault is evenly illuminated with values that gradually decrease towards the capitals. The side arches and barrel vaults are homogeneously illuminated with less intense light.  
The KNX control system is operated manually using 4 buttons that recall the 4 different scenarios, as there is no internet inside the Basilica.  
The chiaroscuro accents create a consistent and unitary overall perception of the sculpture with values that allow it to be viewed through the safety glass from both close up, inside the chapel, as well as from a greater distance. 
The new lighting design helps the viewer to better appreciate the masterpiece, while also highlighting its theological elements and devotional character, so it can be fully understood.