museums

To analyze the recognition of Italian art produced by artists born from 1960 within the international institutional system, we investigated the presence of their works in the permanent collections of major foreign contemporary art museums. We based our research on the list drawn up by Sacco, Santagata, and Trimarchi (“L’arte contemporanea italiana nel mondo 2005,” Skira), updating and supplementing it. In total, 55 public and private museums in 42 cities around the world were analyzed, including Europe, North America, South America, and Asia. The analysis was conducted based on information gathered from museum websites and by consulting the Artfacts.net database for the years from 2000 to the present, which we nonetheless believe underrepresents the contemporary institutional scene.

The investigation clearly shows the international affirmation of important Italian art movements such as Spatialism, Arte Povera, the Transavantgarde, and other great masters of early twentieth-century Italian art. The collections of museums around the world clearly document the well-established success of artists such as Lucio Fontana, Piero Manzoni, Alberto Burri, Giuseppe Penone, Mario Merz, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Alighiero Boetti, Enzo Cucchi, and Francesco Clemente. Italian designers like Enzo Mari, Michele De Lucchi, Andrea Branzi, and the Memphis group are also present in international collections, as are figures from Italian fashion.

Twentieth-century art has traveled and found space even in some important temporary exhibitions, such as the recent one dedicated to Arte Povera at the Bourse de Commerce, curated by Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev, from October 9, 2024, to January 20, 2025, which once again brought attention to the movement. François Pinault himself has several works by various representatives in his collection, from Giovanni Anselmo to Pierpaolo Calzolari to Gilberto Zorio. Other private institutions that have given space to Italian art include the Margulies Collection, again with Arte Povera (October 20, 2021–April 30, 2022), or the Muzeum Susch in Engadin with a retrospective of Laura Grisi (November 29–December 5, 2021), but there have also been public exhibitions such as the one at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes in Buenos Aires, which dedicated a show to the Masters of Contemporary Italian Graphic Art in 2015 and held solo exhibitions for Fontana and Pistoletto in 2017 and 2019, respectively, while the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal in 2006 presented a show on “The Italian World. Design and Avant-garde in Italy in the 20th Century.”

If, therefore, we can take the recognition of twentieth-century Italian art, especially that of the 1950s, 60s, 70s, and 80s, as a given, the picture is very different when we consider the art produced from the 1990s to the present. The analysis shows, in fact, that one-third of the 55 museums considered have in their collections only artists born before 1960, while in another seven there is not a single Italian artist present. In the remaining museums analyzed, there are 88 names of contemporary Italian artists, most of whom appear in only one institution. Dominating the scene—just as in the market and in other contexts—is Maurizio Cattelan, present in 16 museums, including the Pompidou, Guggenheim, Walker Art Center, Boijmans Van Beuningen, and Moderna Museet. Also in terms of solo exhibitions in international museums, the artist known for his provocations boasts an exceptional list and record visitor numbers. His first solo exhibition in China, curated by Francesco Bonami and titled “The Last Judgment” at UCCA in Beijing (November 20, 2021–February 20, 2022), far exceeded expectations: in the first month it recorded 46,000 visitors, about 1,917 per day, nearly double the daily average of the Andy Warhol exhibition held by the same museum at the start of 2021. The Guggenheim dedicated a retrospective to him in 2011–12 that made headlines for the decision to hang the works from the ceiling of the rotunda. A few years later, he returned to the museum with his work “America,” a gold toilet offering the public the extravagant luxury reserved for the 1%. Among the most recent events are his solo show at the Moderna Museet in Stockholm between late 2024 and early 2025, and the installation of the Centre Pompidou Metz collection, titled “Endless Sunday,” in dialogue with his works (on view until February 2, 2027).

Besides him, other artists well represented in the museum collections analyzed are Tatiana Trouvé (in 8 collections), Vanessa Beecroft (7), Francesco Vezzoli (6), Rosa Barba (6), Enrico David (5), Luisa Lambri (3), Paola Pivi, Roberto Cuoghi, Diego Perrone, Adrian Paci, Eva Marisaldi, Grazia Toderi, Eva & Franco Mattes (each with 2 appearances in the sample analyzed). These same names recur in the list of solo and group exhibitions in international museums. Among the major achievements is the current solo exhibition by Rosa Barba at MoMA, “The Ocean of One’s Pause,” running until July 6, 2025, which offers a retrospective of the artist’s 15 years of production through films, kinetic sculptures, and sound.

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France
In French collections, the frequent presence of Maurizio Cattelan, Rosa Barba, and Tatiana Trouvé is notable. The latter, based in Paris, boasts prestigious solo exhibitions: at the Palais de Tokyo in 2002 and at the Centre Pompidou in 2007. Monica Bonvicini also had a solo show at the Palais de Tokyo in 2002, and Loris Cecchini in 2004.

The Centre Pompidou has in its collection about 450 Italian artists, of which only 28 were born after 1960. Those with the most works in the collection are Elisabetta Benassi, Armin Linke, and Tatiana Trouvé. The first work acquired was "Just From Cynthia" by Alberto Sorbelli from 1995, purchased in 1998. Last year, several works were added to the collection: some photographs by Armin Linke and Estelle Blaschke, partly acquired and partly donated; the 2009 film by Paola Pivi "I wish I am a Fish," donated by the artist; a work on paper by Giulia Andreani, "La scuola di taglio e cucito" from 2023, thanks to a donation from the Amis du Centre Pompidou, Cercle International - Europe; and finally a sculpture by Maurizio Cattelan, "Junho" from 2023, also donated by the artist.

French institutions have repeatedly given space to contemporary Italian artists, especially in group exhibitions. Among the most recent exhibitions exclusively dedicated to Italian art, we recall "SI Sindrome Italiana" at Le Magasin in Grenoble in 2010. In the same institution, there were solo exhibitions by Monica Bonvicini in 2001, Tatiana Trouvé in 2005, and Pietro Roccasalva in 2013. As early as 2007 in Nîmes, there was another opportunity for visibility for Italians at the Carré d’Art-Musée d’Art Contemporain with the exhibition "Où? Scènes du Sud – Espagne, Italie, Portugal," featuring Marco Boggio Sella, Roberto Cuoghi, Lara Favaretto, Flavio Favelli, Giuseppe Gabellone, Piero Golia, Diego Perrone, Paola Pivi, and Patrick Tuttofuoco.

Germany
Among the contemporary Italian artists present in the German permanent collections analyzed in the study are Rosa Barba at the Hamburger Bahnhof, Monica Bonvicini and Vanessa Beecroft at the Neue Nationalgalerie. The first two are based in Germany and are well rooted in the German and international art scene. In many other German museums, only artists born before 1960 are present, among whom Jannis Kounellis and Mario Merz are very well known and well represented.

The most recent solo exhibition is the large installation “A Perpetual Now” by Rosa Barba at the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin in August 2021, on the occasion of the museum’s reopening after renovation. We also find Tatiana Trouvé at the Kunstmuseum Bonn in 2014, Paolo Parisi at the Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus & Kunstbau in 2006, and in 2003 Maurizio Cattelan had a solo exhibition at the Museum Ludwig in Cologne. The same names appear among the most frequent in group exhibitions at the German museums analyzed: Maurizio Cattelan, Monica Bonvicini, Rosa Barba, Tatiana Trouvé, and Vanessa Beecroft.

United Kingdom
In the British permanent collections, at Tate Modern we find Rosa Barba, Francesco Vezzoli, Grazia Toderi, and Enrico David. At the ICA Institute of Contemporary Arts in London, there have been several solo exhibitions by Italian artists of the generation studied, including Roberto Cuoghi, Franko B., Enrico David, and Carlo Zanni. Since 2000, the Serpentine has hosted solo exhibitions by Martino Gamper in 2014 and Formafantasma in 2020 (as well as Pistoletto in 2011 and Marisa Merz in 2013), while Whitechapel in 2012 exhibited Maurizio Cattelan (in addition to Giuseppe Penone in 2012 and Giulio Paolini in 2014, belonging to earlier generations) and in 2009 Patrizio Di Massimo.

Whitechapel also provided another opportunity for visibility for Italian art in 2012–2013 with two group exhibitions dedicated to the Sandretto Re Rebaudengo Collection, which included 11 Italian artists of the generation in question: Micol Assäel, Dafne Boggeri, Roberto Cuoghi, Patrizio Di Massimo, Giuseppe Gabellone, Riccardo Giacconi, Sabina Grasso, Domenico Mangano, Diego Marcon, Paola Pivi, and Maria Domenica Rapicavoli. Another group exhibition at the ICA in 2012, Soundworks, included Meris Angioletti, Rossella Biscotti, and Alberto Tadiello. At Tate Modern in 2009, the Futurism exhibition was organized.

Spain
Rosa Barba is in the collection of the MACBA in Barcelona and the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia in Madrid, which also hosted a solo exhibition of hers in 2017. Also at MACBA, in 2015, there was a solo exhibition by photographer Daniele Tamagni. In group shows at MACBA we find Rosa Barba in 2018–19, Chiara Fumai and Federico Solmi in 2016, and Maurizio Cattelan in 2013, while at the Guggenheim Bilbao Daniele Tamagni and Cattelan exhibited in 2013. At the Reina Sofia, Roberto Pietrosanti in 2004 and Archizoom in 2014.

Sweden
The collection of the Moderna Museet in Stockholm includes 1,531 works by Italian artists from all periods, compared to 7,059 by French artists and 7,659 by German artists. The number of British artists is more aligned with the Italians, at 1,602. Among the names present are Enrico Baj, Renato Guttuso, Massimo Campigli, Mario Merz, Kosuth, de Chirico, Morandi, much 19th- and 20th-century photography, designers like Sottsass and Mari, but only four Italian artists born after 1960. The first contemporary work to enter the collection was a photograph by Vanessa Beecroft in 1998; the latest, some works by Cattelan in 2024, the year in which the artist also had a major solo exhibition ("The Third Hand," from February 24, 2024, to January 12, 2025). Francesco Vezzoli had an exhibition in 2009, in dialogue with Salvador Dalí. Among group shows, in 2008 there was an important exhibition titled Time & Place – Milano – Torino 1958–1968 with 42 names of Italian 20th-century art, including many representatives of Arte Povera. Between late 2024 and early 2025, Cattelan’s solo exhibition led to the inclusion in the collection of the famous pigeons ("Ghosts") and some artist’s books, through a mixed donation and acquisition arrangement.

Switzerland
Contemporary Italian artists are well represented in Swiss institutional exhibitions, both solo and group. Among the most recent solo exhibitions: Lorenza Longhi at Kunsthalle Zürich in 2021, Tatiana Trouvé at the Migros Museum in Zurich and twice at the Mamco in Geneva, in 2014 and 2004, where Eva Marisaldi also had a solo show in 2003. Cattelan exhibited at the Fondation Beyeler in 2013 with the installation "Kaputt" featuring five taxidermied horses. Rosa Barba at the Kunsthaus Zürich in 2012, Enrico David exhibited at the Kunstmuseum Basel in 2009, while Paola Pivi and Yuri Ancarani showed at the Kunsthalle Basel, in 2007 and 2018 respectively.

United States
There have been many exhibitions in the U.S., in addition to the two solo shows by Cattelan at the Guggenheim Museum, already mentioned. The New York institution also dedicated an exhibition to Italian Futurism in 2014, "Italian Futurism, 1909–1944: Reconstructing the Universe." At least 33 Italians are in the collection, but only four are contemporary: Cattelan, Adrian Paci (an Albanian long based in Italy), Diego Perrone, and Francesco Vezzoli. A show specifically dedicated to contemporary artists was "Italics: Italian Art Between Tradition and Revolution 1968–2008," curated by Francesco Bonami and presented at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago in 2009, originating from Palazzo Grassi (September 27, 2008 – March 22, 2009). MoMA celebrated Italian creativity in 2013 with a solo show dedicated to the set designer Dante Ferretti. Among the artists in its collection are Monica Bonvicini, Cattelan, and Enrico David. The latter had a solo exhibition at the New Museum in 2010. Works by Cuoghi, Cattelan, and Beecroft were also shown at the same institution during the "Skin Fruit" exhibition from the Dakis Jannou Collection in 2010, curated by Jeff Koons, which sparked much debate. At PS1 there have been solo exhibitions by Rosa Barba, Lara Favaretto, Loris Cecchini, Elisabetta Benassi, and Luca Vitone. Between late 1999 and early 2000, this museum also hosted "Minimalia: An Italian Vision in 20th Century Art," curated by Achille Bonito Oliva.

At the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, there are 73 Italian artists in the collection, but only three born after 1960, again including Vanessa Beecroft, Enrico David, and Tatiana Trouvé.

Looking at the West Coast, among the many exhibitions, MOCA dedicated a solo exhibition to Cattelan in 2003 and to Vezzoli in 2014, both of whom are in the collection along with Vanessa Beecroft, Enrico David, Luisa Lambri, Alessandro Pessoli, and Grazia Toderi. Beecroft and Lambri are also in the collection of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Japan
The Mori Art Museum is an institution opened in 2003 in the Mori Tower in the Roppongi district by Mori Building Co., one of Japan’s most important real estate and urban development companies. It holds a collection of about 480 works of art, mainly Japanese and from the Asia-Pacific region, but also includes 38 Italian artists. Among them, about ten are old masters, three are modern artists, another three from the fashion world, six are architects, and 16 are 20th-century artists, but only five were born after 1960.

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