CARRARA – La Giorgio Conti Foundation of Carrara inaugurates a new exhibition dedicated to the painting of Belle Epoque Italianaa period of great cultural and artistic ferment that coincided with the unification of the country.
The exhibition, entitled Belle Époque. Italian Painters of Modern Life. From Lega and Fattori to Boldini and De Nittis to Nomellini and Balla, will be open to the public from Saturday 29 June to Sunday 27 October 2024 at Palazzo Cucchiari.
In Search of a National Identity
The exhibition, curated by Massimo Bertozzi, retraces the artistic events of a period of great cultural ferment, characterized by the search for a new national identity and an openness towards new European trends. Among the artists on display are Giovanni Boldini, Giuseppe De Nittis, Plinio Nomellini and Giacomo Balla, just to name a few. Beyond ninety works, including paintings on canvas and on wood, watercolours, pastels and sculptures, covering the period from 1864 al 1917, illustrating the transformations of Italian painting from the unification of Italy to the dawn of the twentieth century.
After the unification of Italy, painting evolved towards a national and international dimensionshifting attention from rural to urban life. Entrepreneurs, high finance and aristocracy they become new promoters of the arts, partly replacing the academies.
From historical painting to modern life
This change marks a betrayal of the ideals of the Risorgimento and a disenchantment of intellectuals, compared to which only the most famous artists freed themselves thanks to the private recognition of the new entrepreneurial bourgeoisie and the liberal aristocracy, which was also soon disappointed by the results of the Italian “revolution”. History painting is replaced by representations of modern life, influenced by French literary narratives.
Artists develop a dualism between noble ideals and complacency for the most degraded aspects of civil life. During what will be called the “Giolitti age”, some painters “they praise pointillist painting as the last true Italian contribution to European art, with futurist intemperance and metaphysical divination“.
Exhibition route
The exhibition itinerary is divided into seven sections, plus an interlude dedicated to sculpture:
Modern times: From the countryside to the cities, artists explore new urban spaces, streets, squares and seaside locations.
Home and Family: the home as a place to exhibit, with public spaces such as living rooms and studies.
The painters of modern life: artists gain new social consideration, becoming subjects of painting together with their ateliers and families.
Interlude: The Field of Sculpture: a journey between romanticism and modernism in Art Nouveau sculpture.
Old and new myths: the search for new distractions and exotic worlds, influenced by mystical substances and practices.
Poor country: representations of the life of the Italian people, between ancient needs and new expectations.
Ladies’ paradise: worldliness and the role of women in society, from the family household to philanthropic and cultural activities. In essence, the condition of women donne but it’s always the same…
Waiting tomorrow: pointillist painting becomes an expression of Symbolism, almost a national version of Art Nouveau, the field of action of the “Italian secession”, open to the genesis and debut of the avant-garde.
Go with me
Giorgio Conti Foundation
BELLE ÉPOQUE. ITALIAN PAINTERS OF MODERN LIFE.
FROM LEGA AND FATTORI TO BOLDINI AND DE NITTIS TO NOMELLINI AND BALLA
Edited by Massimo Bertozzi
From 29.06.2024 until 27.10.2024
Cucchiari Palace, via Cucchiari 1, Carrara
Opening hours: from 06.29.2024 to 09.15.2024: TUE-WED-THUR-SU 9.30am-12.30pm and 4pm-8pm; FRI-SAT 9.30am-12.30pm and 4pm-11pm. From 09.17.2024 to 10.27.2024: TUE-WED-THUR-SU 9.30am-12.30pm and 3pm-8pm; E-SAT 9.30am-12.30pm and 3pm-9pm. Closed MON.
Entrance fees: €10; reduced €8; groups of 10-29 people €8; from 30 onwards €7; university students €5; free for young people up to 18 years of age, disabled people and their companion, journalists with a national card; Unicoop, Coop, Coop Liguria and Touring Club Italiano agreements are foreseen
Tel. +39 0585 72355
www.palazzocucchiari.it
