The exhibition “Classicismo, Realismo, Vanguarda: pintura italiana no entreguerras” opened yesterday evening at the Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil.
The initiative is the result of the cooperation between the Embassy of Italy to Brasil, the Museum of Contemporary Art of the University of São Paulo and the CCBB.
The exhibition will be on display until 20 January. It features 67 works from the prestigious Francisco Matarazzo Sobrinho and Yolanda Penteado Collection. These include masterpieces by Giorgio De Chirico, Felice Casorati, Carlo Carrà, Afro Basaldella, Renato Guttuso, Mario Sironi and, above all, the “Self-portrait” by Amedeo Modigliani (1919), which is undoubtedly the most relevant and precious element of the Collection.
The period ranging from World War 1 to the post World War 2 years is considered one of the most productive times for Italian contemporary art. Change, decline, evasion, war, reconstruction: the greatest merit of this exhibition is presenting the wide range of themes that inspired Italian paintings of the time through the works of some of its most prestigious artists.
The exhibition has been made possible thanks to funds allocated by the Memorandum of Understanding to promote the image of Italy abroad.
