At Palazzo Merulana an exhibition ... on the nose. Featuring works by Magritte, Fabre, Cattelan and many others

From March 25 to May 21, 2023 Palazzo Merulana, in synergy with the Elena and Claudio Cerasi Foundation and CoopCulture, is presenting the exhibition Noses for Art, conceived and curated by Joanna De Vos and Melania Rossi. A selection of over fifty works will be on display to connect, in an original and ironic way,Italian and Belgianart according to a particular fil rouge: the nose.

The exhibition is not only about “noses as forms, or as a sense of smell,” but also intends to stimulate a reflection on the metaphorical meaning of this organ, the first to be formed in the womb, a hereditary and identity character that represents the primordial instinct and is also a metaphor of “having a nose” and an immediate way of approaching things, “feeling” them before even seeing them. Through years of collaborations, curators De Vos and Rossi, respectively of Belgian and Italian origin, have been engaged in analyzing how Italians and Belgians on an aesthetic and conceptual level share a “nose for art,” how artists follow their “nose,” and how, in other ways, so do passionate collectors or experts themselves in curating exhibitions.

“Noses for Art finds its origins in the meeting of two curatorial noses,” the curators explain. “We curators are creators ourselves, but we create by mixing sources and voices, often including our own. We look for connections that others might not immediately see, embrace the unusual and explore the unexpected. Thus we have identified unthought-of similarities and specific differences, which we want to reveal in this project. Italy and Belgium are different countries, but they are also culturally similar: in their instinctive approach, in their ability to be ironic (take by the nose), to improvise (go by the nose) and in their total willingness to put themselves on the line.”

First and foremost, the exhibition proposes a dialogue between Italian and Belgian art of the early 20th century through the connection between the Cerasi Collection, permanently present at Palazzo Merulana, in particular with pictorial and sculptural works from the 1920s to the 1940s, and a selection of Belgian works from the same period, lent by private Belgian collectors and some institutions. Artists such as René Magritte, Léon Spilliaert, Paul Joostens, Constant Permeke will dialogue with Giorgio De Chirico, Francesco Trombadori, Antonio Donghi, Antonietta Raphael and many others. The exhibition project aims to be in harmony with the collection created by Elena and Claudio Cerasi. The result of years of passion and love for art, their collection does not respect strict rules: sometimes it rediscovers lesser-known artists of the past, sometimes it exhibits rare works by famous artists in dialogue with those of contemporary authors. A non-linear path, in which instinct and “flair” have been the driving force, and with which the Noses for Art project feels perfectly in tune.

The second path within the exhibition involves nine contemporary Belgian and as many Italian artists whose works celebrate, challenge and invite reflection on the nose, the senses and art. From Peter De Cupere’s Olfactory Self-Portrait (one of his famous “scratch and sniff” paintings), to the self-portrait of Maurizio Cattelan, who writes in his Unauthorized Autobiography, “When I was born they were very disappointed. I had an adult nose.” And more drawings, paintings, sculptures, installations, reanimated cinema, video works, and photographs, which revive tradition and mythology or investigate the human condition scattering their “essences” in the halls of the precious Palazzo Merulana.

The contemporary artists in the exhibition are Francis Alÿs, Francesco Arena, Michaël Borremans, Maurizio Cattelan, Michael Dans, Laura de Coninck, Peter de Cupere, Jan Fabre, Mariana Ferratto, Thomas Lerooy, Emiliano Maggi, Sofie Muller, Luigi Ontani, Daniele Puppi, Anna Raimondo, Marta Roberti, Yves Velter, and Serena Vestrucci.

Belgian artists of the early 20th century present with their works are Jos Albert, Pierre-Louis Flouquet, Robert Giron, Oscar Jespers, Paul Joostens, René Magritte, George Minne, Constant Permeke, Léon Spilliaert, Marcel Stobbaerts, Henri Van Straten, Fernand Wery.

In dialogue with artists from the permanent collection: Giacomo Balla, Duilio Cambellotti, Felice Casorati, Giorgio De Chirico, Antonio Donghi, Ercole Drei, Guglielmo Janni, Leoncillo Leonardi, Antonietta Raphael, Francesco Trombadori, Alberto Ziveri.

The exhibition is accompanied by a catalog, published by Bruno Devos at Stockmans Art Books with texts by Joanna De Vos and Melania Rossi, Giacinto di Pietrantonio and Caro Verbeek.

For info and reservations www.palazzomerulana.it

Image: Luigi Ontani, Evadevamo (1997; watercolor and pen on paper, Pule wood, 212 x 50 x 30 cm; private collection) Photo by Luis Do Rosario

At Palazzo Merulana an exhibition ... on the nose. Featuring works by Magritte, Fabre, Cattelan and many others

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