Giorgio de Chirico: The Contemporary Enigma

The exhibition Giorgio de Chirico. The Contemporary Enigma ideally brings Mazzoleni’s 40th anniversary celebrations to a close, presenting the work of Giorgio de Chirico, an artist who has been central to the family’s collecting history and subsequently to the gallery’s activity.

The masterpieces of the pictor optimus are presented here in dialogue with a selection of works by established and contemporary artists who, in different ways, have drawn on his legacy, reinterpreting his style and most distinctive motifs across a period spanning from the 1930s to the present day.

These open-ended juxtapositions suggest the idea of a “continuous Metaphysics”: a visual language that runs throughout de Chirico’s artistic trajectory and continues to resurface in the practices of subsequent generations. The contemporary enigma evoked by the title refers to the inexhaustible capacity of de Chirico’s works to engage viewers and artists in dialogue across different periods, artistic languages and contemporary practices.

The exhibition has been conceived through a direct dialogue with the participating artists, as well as through the invaluable support of the respective Archives and Foundations. Nunzio and Marinella Senatore have created new works especially for the occasion; Francolino and Astore have each curated a site-specific installation of their works; while Iran do Espírito Santo has made previously unseen works available to complement the exhibition narrative. Through dialogues with Alberto Savinio, Felice Casorati, Luciano Fabro, Giulio Paolini, Salvo and Wifredo Lam, the exhibition traces a genealogy of artists who addressed the themes of myth, classicism and metamorphosis through distinct approaches.

Finally, in the encounters between iconic works such as Le Muse Inquietanti (1958) and works by Michelangelo Pistoletto and Massimo Vitali return the human figure, and its representation in contemporary culture, to the centre of the exhibition.

GIORGIO DE CHIRICO. The Contemporary Enigma
Private View: Wednesday, October 28, 10am–8pm
Mazzoleni, Torino. Piazza Solferino, 2 - 10121 Turin
Hours: Tuesday–Saturday, 10am–1pm / 4–7pm
Contact: torino@mazzoleniart.com / mazzoleniart.com