FRENCH PLACE Opens Milan Gallery with Artist Residencies in January 2026

FRENCH PLACE, a new art space founded by Marta Orsola Sironi and Mauro Mattei, will open in Milan on January 29, 2026, at Via Carlo Goldoni 64. The 200-square-meter venue, previously an office, spans two levels: a 100-square-meter ground-floor exhibition area with large windows and a basement studio with 3.5-meter ceilings for monthly artist residencies, a viewing room, and a library for independent international publications. The project evolves from their London space 9 French Place, which operated in a Victorian warehouse in Shoreditch (formerly photographer Tim Walker's studio) and supported emerging artists like Steph Huang and Norberto Spina. That space closed in February 2024. The new Milan location will function as a 'proto-institution' blending a gallery, foundation, and experimental hub. Gallery proceeds will fund an art trust supporting residencies, events, and contemporary research. The first half of 2026 includes two group shows: the inaugural exhibition from January 29 to February 28, and a summer show opening June 25. The viewing room launches January 29 with a video programme. The first resident artist, Matthias Odin, arrives February 12 and opens a site-specific show March 12. French-Portuguese artist Anna de Castro Barbosa follows with a solo exhibition in early May. Sironi and Mattei, together with Mattia Pozzoni, also co-founded MEGA Art Fair in 2024. They plan to continue hosting events in London with two exhibitions per year.