A special exhibit entitled "The Medici, Michelangelo, and the Art of Late Renaissance Florence" is offered from November 9 through February 2. It features over 180 works of art from the period 1537 through 1631. Works on display include paintings, sculpture, graphics, porcelain, costumes, and other art objects. Some of the works are by Michelangelo and other Medici-emloyed artists, and there are important works featured from the Boboli Gardens. Among the items on display are some which have never before been shown outside of Florence, Italy.

According to a source on the Middlebridge (the Middle Kingdom populace mailing list), tapestries will be added to the exhibit in December that are not currently available.

The Art Institute of Chicago has arranged the exhibition in partnership with The Detroit Institute of Arts, the Soprintendenza Speciale per il Polo Museale Fiorentino, the Opificio delle Pietre Dure of Florence, Italy, and the Firenze Mostre in Italy.

After its display in Chicago, the exhibition moves to the Detroit Institute of Arts for another showing, March 16 through June 8.