31 Mario Merz igloos unite at Pirelli HangarBicocca

Pirelli HangarBicocca in Milan opens a major exhibition dedicated to Mario Merz's igloos, gathering 31 examples from prominent museum collections. The show, curated by artistic director Vicente Todolí in partnership with the Fondazione Merz in Turin, presents a metaphorical 'unreal city' where igloos made from clay, iron, beeswax, branches, stone, slate, granite, newspapers, glass, and foam rubber create a horizontal, democratic landscape. Merz, a key figure of Arte Povera, conceived the igloo as a symbol of provisional dwelling, blending natural and industrial materials. Works span from 1968 to 2003, including the first igloo, Igloo di Giap (1968), which quotes Vietnamese general Võ Nguyên Giáp, and Senza titolo (doppio igloo di Porto) (1998), topped with a taxidermied deer. Neon texts by Ezra Pound and the Fibonacci sequence recur, while slogans like 'Objet cache-toi' reference the 1968 protests. The exhibition redefines space, merging interior and exterior, painting and sculpture.