Cortesi Contemporary is pleased to announce the opening of its newly renovated exhibition space, located in a prestigious building in the heart of Lugano.
The cultural project, initiated by collector Stefano Cortesi, aims to become a place of exchange, research, and experimentation, making modern and contemporary art accessible to a wide audience.
The gallery will open with the group exhibition Arte Italiana ’60–’90, a show that follows Cortesi’s vision as a collector, highlighting that strand of Italian culture which has long influenced the Canton of Ticino.
At a time of renewal and cultural vibrancy for the city of Lugano—marked by the upcoming opening of the LAC museum—the gallery seeks to integrate itself within the local fabric, fostering open and dynamic relationships with the surrounding cultural environment.
The new 200 m² exhibition space, designed by Studio Albera Monti in Milan in collaboration with Ticinese architect Attilio Panzeri—who oversaw the renovation of the entire building—launches a cycle of exhibitions that will move freely from modern to contemporary art. This autumn, the gallery will present a group show dedicated to the 2000s, exploring how artistic production has evolved among new generations on an international scale.
Arte Italiana ’60–’90 aims to establish a dialogue among the works of some of the most significant figures in the Italian art scene. “The art-historical investigation focuses on the thirty-year period between 1960 and 1990, a post-war and pre-Internet era emancipated from the reconstruction climate of the 1950s, yet still capable of generating and nurturing creative situations away from the global spotlight of the 2000s,” writes curator Michele Robecchi. Nonetheless, he acknowledges that “attempting to summarise thirty years of Italian art history is a task that far exceeds the scope of a single exhibition, regardless of its scale or ambition.”
The exhibition features masterpieces by emblematic artists who redefined the very notion of making art, pushing its boundaries beyond traditional techniques. It was a period of great creative ferment and liberation, during which major artistic movements emerged—movements that revolutionised the concept of art and profoundly transformed artists’ working practices. Among the works on view are Manzoni’s material experiments, the energetic gesture of Fontana’s cuts—documented in the photographs of Ugo Mulas—and the return to figuration and craftsmanship in both painting and sculpture, exemplified by artists like Paladino.
Artists on show:
Alighiero Boetti, Agostino Bonalumi, Enrico Castellani, Sandro Chia, Dadamaino, Nicola De Maria, Lucio Fontana, Piero Manzoni, Fausto Melotti, Maurizio Mochetti, Ugo Mulas, Gastone Novelli, Mimmo Paladino, Giulio Paolini, Giuseppe Penone, Arnaldo Pomodoro, Paolo Scheggi, Mario Schifano, Ettore Spalletti
The exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue published by Mousse Publishing, featuring a text by Michele Robecchi, who will be present for the occasion.