Archive for Category: Insights

It is difficult to categorise a personality like Ettore Sottsass (1917–2007): an architect and designer, but also an artist, ceramicist, photographer and writer, a man of extraordinary imagination. Or rather, of ‘indomitable creativity’, as Fernanda Pivano, his first wife, described it. Winner of three Compassi d’Oro and numerous other awards, with his work exhibited in several museums around the world – including MoMA in New York – he created some of the most original objects in Italian design, which still feel remarkably contemporary to this day.

Few objects in the world test a designer’s abilities quite like the domestic chair. It must support the human body, occupy just the right amount of space, be suitable for mass production without losing its formal identity, and withstand changing fashions over time. We have selected seven chairs that have passed this test with flying colours. They have found their way into our homes, museums and popular culture and, in many cases, are still being manufactured today with virtually no significant changes to their original design.

Spectacular, daring, meticulously planned or surprisingly simple: art thefts are as numerous as they are varied. Despicable and reprehensible crimes that deprive society of cultural treasures and impoverish history in the pursuit of private gain, they have nevertheless always exerted an undeniable fascination on the general public. Perhaps it is their ingenuity, their adventurous spirit, or the aura of exceptionality that surrounds them. As recent incidents in Paris – where the Louvre was robbed of Crown and Napoleonic jewels – and at the Rocca Magnani near Parma – from which works by Renoir, Cézanne and Matisse were stolen – demonstrate, thieves have always found, and continue to find, ingenious and unexpected ways of getting their hands on other people’s treasures. Sometimes investigations are successful and the stolen works are recovered, while in other cases the mystery remains unsolved to this day.

It is always the face that we look towards, in life as in art, when we question a subject’s identity and attempt to interpret their emotions and thoughts. But what happens when this window is denied to us? What if the person shows us their back? What cannot be seen attracts our attention, and its symbolic and poetic value captivates us. From the Roman age to contemporary art, let us explore together some of the most iconic figures seen from behind and allow ourselves to be seduced by this unusual perspective.

Independent, dynamic and capable, Eleonora di Toledo (1522–1562) was one of the most important and influential female figures of the Renaissance. Daughter of the powerful Viceroy of Naples, Don Pedro Alvarez de Toledo, she married Cosimo I de’ Medici (1519–1574) at a very young age.
A deep love and strong bond developed between them, reflected also in the management of the Florentine court. Thanks in part to her influence, the Medici succeeded in strengthening their power across Tuscany and consolidating the Duchy after the turbulent republican period that had forced them to flee the city.
Portraits and documents from the period portray a confident and enterprising woman, capable of shaping ambitious projects and far-reaching visions, the results of which can still be admired today, such as the magnificent Giardino di Boboli.

It is said that Raphael was a skilled seducer and that Bernini once tried to kill his brother in a fit of jealousy after discovering his relationship with his lover, Costanza Bonarelli. It seems that Manet and Degas were in love with the same woman, which may have contributed to the tension between them. The lively romantic life of Pablo Picasso is well known.
Love has always been an essential part of artists’ lives and work. But what happens when romantic partnership intertwines with professional collaboration? Sometimes masterpieces are born, sometimes sparks fly. Let us explore the stories of five famous couples in 20th-century art.

Hair, especially women’s hair, has attracted interest across many periods and cultures. Short or long, loose or styled, displayed or covered, fashion reflects religious and political norms, social conventions, and becomes a visible language of identity and belonging. In the Renaissance, hairstyles became increasingly varied and elaborate, and women adopted them to assert their role and express their personality. Let’s explore this fascinating world through a selection of artworks from that period.

“There is a young man from Cento who paints with such felicity of invention, is a great draughtsman and a most skilful colourist…” With these words Ludovico Carracci (1555–1619) described in a letter the talent of Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, known as Guercino (1591–1666). Born in Cento, near Ferrara, Guercino showed a remarkable inclination for painting from an early age, which first led him to Bologna – where he came into contact with the great Emilian master – and then to Rome, in the service of the papal court.
The Eternal City still preserves some of the most memorable works of his entire production, precious testimonies of a new, personal and astonishing artistic language.

Human beings have always shaped the earth: clay, water, air and fire are the ingredients of an age-old tradition born for practical purposes but soon enriched by aesthetic intentions. Since antiquity, vases and other containers have been decorated with ornamental motifs, mythological stories, allegories and graphic elements reflecting the tastes of their time. On occasion, they even become symbols of an era, as happens during the Renaissance, when Italian maiolica is no longer associated merely with tableware but becomes a true collector’s item. Throughout the sixteenth century, the art of tin-glazed pottery evolved in its techniques, forms and style, giving rise to astonishing creations—remarkable in their beauty, variety and craftsmanship—that still captivate viewers today.

He was the master of the Ferrarese Renaissance, yet his memory was lost for centuries, and even today we know very little about him and his training. Cosmè Tura – a multifaceted artist at the Este court during the second half of the fifteenth century – managed to blend the courtly taste of Gothic art with the innovations of Tuscan painting, creating a personal and distinctive style that would become a model for others to follow.
Let us retrace the life of this major figure of Italian art through some of his most celebrated masterpieces.