Everyone’s favourite pharmacy/gift store Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella is currently displaying a luminous work by British artist David Hockney in the historic halls along via della Scala in Florence.
Annunciation II, After Fra Angelico (2017) is a direct dialogue between the star of the show now on at Palazzo Strozzi and the Museum of San Marco, and the Bradford-born artist who continues to be a key figure on the international scene. As a painter, draughtsman and tireless experimenter, he renews figurative language with works ranging from Pop Art to his most recent digital explorations.
Displayed in the sacristy frescoed by Florentine artist Mariotto di Nardo, the work is a contemporary reinterpretation of the famous Annunciation frescoed by Fra Angelico around 1440 in the Dominican convent of San Marco in Florence. Within a large painting stretching over two metres wide, the British artist applies his unique style to reimagine in reverse perspective a masterpiece like Fra Angelico’s, which Hockney had known since childhood thanks to a poster hanging in the hallway of his primary school. The result is both a tribute and a challenge: a homage to Fra Angelico’s subject matter and, at the same time, a break with the perspectival conventions of the Renaissance.
The choice of exhibition venue highlights a deep historical connection. When the Dominican friar was creating his Annunciation at San Marco, the Dominican community of Santa Maria Novella had already been active for centuries. Founded in 1221, Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella is the oldest pharmacy in the world, with more than 800 years of uninterrupted activity. From formulas preserved in the manuscripts of Dominican friars to fragrances that have transcended the centuries, its legacy in the art of apothecary is intertwined with the history, people and social fabric of Florence.
“Business is culture,” emphasizes Carlo Pesenti, president of Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella and CEO of Italmobiliare. “On one hand, businesses are custodians and interpreters of an intangible heritage of values, traditions and identity. On the other hand, companies play an important role in the promotion and support of culture. For over 800 years, Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella has been the emblem of this duality and, on this occasion, reaffirms its role as a guardian of tradition and innovation, offering the public an experience that weaves together historical memory, contemporary art and Florentine charm.”
The exhibition is jointly produced by Bergamo-based art space gres art 671 and the Palazzo Strozzi Foundation. The artwork can be visited free-of-charge during Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella opening hours (9.30am-8pm daily) until January 26, 2026.
