On the occasion of the International Day of Italian Contemporary Art (October 11, 2018) organized by the Italian Contemporary Art Museum Association (AMACI), the Embassy of Italy, and the Italian Cultural Institute in Washington, DC, together with Magazzino Italian Art Foundation, presented New Directions: Italian Contemporary Art in the United States, a dynamic conversation on the current state of contemporary Italian art with art historian and curator Ilaria Bernardi, artist Massimo Bartolini, and Nancy Olnick and Giorgio Spanu, co-founders of Magazzino Italian Art Foundation, a museum in the Hudson Valley dedicated to exhibiting and advancing scholarship on post-war and contemporary Italian art.
An exhibition of photographs from Marco Anelli’s recent project Building Magazzino will also be on view through November 6, 2018 in the auditorium of the Italian Embassy. Two artworks by Massimo Bartolini are also in display.
“The event and discussions showcased how Italian contemporary art is evolving, embracing new mediums and new technologies. Italian contemporary art continues the legacy of the great Italian artist of the past, shedding new light on Italian creativity and ingenuity” said Ambassador Varricchio.
“We are thrilled to be a part of the celebration of Italian Contemporary Art Day here in DC. We started Magazzino Italian Art Foundation with the mission to share the inspired artistic voices of the Italian art world, from the Post-War period to today, with the international art world and are in admiration of the incredible work both the Italian Embassy and Cultural Institute do to support Italian art and culture stateside.” – said Giorgio Spanu co-founder of Magazzino Italian Art.
“With the presentation of off-site exhibitions and lectures, alongside the launch of our research institute and artist and scholar residency programs in New York, we hope to continue to share and amplify the dynamic and expansive ideas contemporary Italian artists and thinkers are contending with today. As demonstrated by our conversation with Ilaria and Massimo, and Marco’s exhibited photography, the insights that emerged from tonight’s program speak broadly to the conditions of the current creative climate, in Italy and beyond.” – Nancy Olnick.
Giornata del Contemporaneo – Contemporary Art Day” is an event held annually in Italy to celebrate contemporary art, now at its 14th edition. For the first time this year, the Contemporary Art Day is also being promoted abroad through the network of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI) as the 1st International Festival of the “Giornata del Contemporaneo – Italian Contemporary Art”: nearly 80 offices of Embassies, Consulates and Italian Cultural Institutes joined the initiative, organizing more than 80 events, debates, presentations and exhibitions on the theme of contemporary art culture, with the aim of not only highlighting artists and their works but also the producers, curators, stand fitters, museum directors, critics, art magazines and books.
