March 2 - April 4, 1988
With the announcement of its Spring exhibition plans, the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice, will for the first time present a major anthology of work by living artists. The selection of the work of three Italian born artists whose successful careers have been conducted in the United States, appropriately reflects the duality of The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation which operates both the Guggenheim Collection in Venice and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York. As Fred Licht, Curator of the exhibition, commented: “the exhibition raises questions of great interest to Italy whose culture for some time has been developing not only within its national boundaries but also, and with equal success, overseas where the Italian presence is by now a well-recognised factor.”
Giorgio Cavallon, born in Sorio (Vicenza) in 1904, went to America in 1922. He joined the avant-garde of American Abstractionists (he worked with Arshile Gorky for a period) and was soon recognised as the most lyrical of the Abstract Expressionist painters. The Sardinian Costantino Nivola, born 1911, had already completed his artistic training at the Brera, Milan, when he went to America, where he was influenced by Le Corbusier. His sculpture, whether in bronze, marble or terracotta, continues to manifest the artist’s roots in Mediterranean culture. Italo Scanga, born in Lago (Reggio Calabria) in 1932, travelled to America in 1947. His sculptures – painted assemblages often anthropomorphic in character – use wit, even mockery as their expressive means.
The exhibition, which consists of loans from the artists, from museums and galleries as well as private collectors, will travel to several other Italian cities. Assitalia is insuring the works of art throughout their Italian itinerary. The exhibition in Venice, which will be inaugurated at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection on March 1, and in Bari, Castello Svevo, September 10 –October 16, 1988, have been made possible by a generous grant from Assitalia. The exhibition catalog will be printed by Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, Milan.
In the same period, the Peggy Guggenheim Collection will present a selection of works of art by contemporary Italian artists from the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York. On April 9, 1988, the permanent collection at Palazzo Venier dei Leoni will reopen to the public.
The extended open season of the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, during which temporary exhibitions are mounted, is made possible through a grant from United Technologies Corporation. The Peggy Guggenheim Collection is supported by an annual grant form the Regione Veneto.