Ferrara, city acquires an early masterpiece by Previati for its museums

Ferrara is celebrating the entry into its public collections of a key work by its most celebrated Divisionist painter, Gaetano Previati (Ferrara, 1852 - Lavagna, 1920). It is the painting Tranquility in the Family (circa 1887), an oil on canvas measuring 90 by 135 centimeters (framed 111 by 160 centimeters), which was donated to the Ferrara Galleries of Modern and Contemporary Art by the Giuseppe Pianori Foundation, in fulfillment of the founder’s wishes. The acquisition, approved yesterday by the City Council at the proposal of Culture Councillor Marco Gulinelli, represents an important enrichment of the city’s artistic heritage.

“With this acquisition,” stresses Councillor Gulinelli, “the City Council confirms its commitment to the enhancement of its cultural heritage and the promotion of the great Italian painting tradition, which precisely in Ferrara found expression. Once Palazzo Massari reopens, among the 5 great museums we will reopen next year after long-awaited restoration work, the work will find its place there, within the section of the Museo dell’Ottocento dedicated to the key figures of modern Ferrara painting, among whom Previati is unfailing. I thank the Pianori Foundation for the donation of this important work, the beauty of which will enrich our entire community.”

A key work in Previati’s research

The work, which formerly belonged to a private collection in Bologna, is located at a crucial moment in Previati’s pictorial evolution, marking the transition from the scapigliata lesson of Tranquillo Cremona toward the Divisionist experiments that would later define his mature style. Tranquility in the Family presents a double portrait with a strong Symbolist suggestion: in the foreground an absorbed female figure, in the background a pensive man, in an atmosphere dense with introspection that anticipates some of the artist’s pivotal themes.

The acquisition of Tranquility in the Family is also of particular significance for the theme of motherhood, central to Previati’s poetics and destined to find its highest expression in the celebrated Maternity (1890-1891), a manifesto of “ideist” pointillism presented at the First Brera Triennale.

For Ferrara, which boasts an unbreakable bond with the artist, this donation represents a rare opportunity: in fact, the collection of the Gallerie d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea preserves few examples from Previati’s pre-Divisionist period. The entry of this masterpiece thus allows the exhibition to be completed and offers a broader look at the painter’s stylistic evolution. With this acquisition, Ferrara reaffirms its role as custodian of Gaetano Previati’s artistic memory, enriching the city’s cultural landscape with a work of strong historical and symbolic value.

Ferrara, city acquires an early masterpiece by Previati for its museums

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