Modigliani case: for Chiappini and Zuffi, certain works and instrumental controversy

Press conference at Palazzo Ducale, Genoa, to confirm the position of the Fondazione Palazzo Ducale and the curators of the Modigliani exhibition, Rudy Chiappini and Stefano Zuffi, around the case raised by independent collector and scholar Carlo Pepi, according to whom the Genoese exhibition features several forgeries (and to whom Marc Restellini, who has curated exhibitions and publications on Modigliani, has agreed).

During the conference, Chiappini said, “We decided, with an act of great responsibility, not to give in to the flattery of presenting new works, but to focus on works that were already widely known for their presence in catalogs raisonné, for their presence in major exhibitions, for their presence in books dedicated to Modigliani and also for the history of the painting, or for the expertise that accompanied them.” The curator also said that he considers the controversy that has arisen around the authorship of the paintings on display to be instrumental: 2020 will mark the centenary of Modigliani’s death, and, Chiappini declares, “we imagine that major exhibitions are going to be organized, and to be able to grab these exhibitions or to be identified as the major expert on Modigliani is tempting for many people, and especially it is tempting for two art historians, two figures who have been carrying on a controversy for decades. We can therefore assume that there is a more or less underground war between those who want to be identified as the Modigliani expert, going to fill a void that currently exists.” Harsh words also against Marc Restellini, especially from Massimo Vitta Zellman, president of Mondomostre Skira, the entity that organized the exhibition: “Marc Restellini supports this thesis and has been presented as the prestigious president of the Pinacothèque de Paris,” but the Pinacothèque de Paris is “an empty space in which Marc Restellini put on a series of exhibitions, three years ago he went bankrupt, as you can easily verify, and he is being chased by the European community for the debts he left around. In raising hell, as they say, we need to be careful how we use words.”

The solution, for Chiappini, can only come from discussion: “in the absence of a universally recognized Modigliani expert-for example, auction houses no longer trust individual appraisals-what is important for us is the opinion of the international scientific community.” None of the works in Genoa, according to Chiappini, would ever be questioned by the international scientific community. Meanwhile, the investigation continues.

Image: one of the disputed works: Portrait of Mary (1919; oil on cardboard, 66 x 54 cm; Private collection)

Modigliani case: for Chiappini and Zuffi, certain works and instrumental controversy

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