Giorgio Morandi's Largest Overseas Retrospective Opens in Shanghai

The Museum of Art Pudong (MAP) in Shanghai is hosting "Giorgio Morandi. Solo," the largest exhibition ever dedicated to the Italian artist outside Italy. The show, opening June 16, 2026, and running until October 28, 2026, features over 140 works spanning paintings, etchings, watercolors, and drawings, organized into more than 30 sections. Curated by Lorenzo Balbi, director of MAMbo and the Museo Morandi in Bologna, and Francesco D'Arelli, director of the Italian Cultural Institute in Shanghai, the exhibition deliberately focuses solely on Morandi, with the title "Solo" referencing a musical solo. The display includes original documents, objects from Casa Morandi, and, for the first time outside Bologna, the artist's printing press for etchings. The installation, designed by Aldo Cibic Workshop, aims to recreate the contemplative atmosphere of Morandi's work with intimate spaces and diffused light. Housed in the Jean Nouvel-designed museum, the exhibition is seen as a significant act of cultural diplomacy, strengthening ties between Bologna and China. Morandi's popularity in Asia has grown due to perceived affinities with Chinese aesthetics, such as attention to emptiness and silence. The project is scheduled to travel to Seoul next, signaling the ongoing international journey of the artist known for his sedentary lifestyle.