Ilaria Bernardi on the Duty to Support Italian Contemporary Art
Art historian and curator Ilaria Bernardi argues for sustained support of Italian artists from the last twenty years, countering the trend of favoring foreign artists. Initially specializing in 1960s-70s Italian art—publishing monographs on Galleria La Tartaruga, Teatro delle Mostre, and Giulio Paolini's works on paper, and curating a Cesare Tacchi retrospective at Palazzo delle Esposizioni in 2018—she shifted focus in 2016 to younger Italian talents amid globalization pressures. She curated 'Young Italians' at the Italian Cultural Institute in New York in 2018, promoted by Magazzino Italian Art, and 'Wall Eyes' in Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Rome in 2019-20, supported by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She also organized a solo show for Andrea Mastrovito at the Galleria Nazionale di Roma in 2019. Bernardi calls for a long-term, systemic cultural and economic program involving all stakeholders—artists, gallerists, curators, museum directors, collectors, auction houses, academies, and ministries—to ensure lasting legitimacy for Italian art.
Key facts
- Ilaria Bernardi is an art historian and curator born in 1985.
- She worked with Germano Celant and Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev at Castello di Rivoli.
- She published monographs on Galleria La Tartaruga, Teatro delle Mostre, and Giulio Paolini's works on paper.
- She co-curated a Cesare Tacchi retrospective at Palazzo delle Esposizioni in 2018 with Daniela Lancioni.
- She curated 'Young Italians' at the Italian Cultural Institute in New York in 2018, promoted by Magazzino Italian Art.
- She curated 'Wall Eyes' in Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Rome in 2019-20, supported by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
- She curated a solo show for Andrea Mastrovito at the Galleria Nazionale di Roma in 2019.
- Bernardi advocates for a long-term systemic program to support Italian contemporary art.
- She mentions artists Andrea Mastrovito, Marinella Senatore, Eugenio Tibaldi, and Gian Maria Tosatti as examples of younger talents.
- The article was published in April 2020 on Artribune.
Entities
Artists
- Ilaria Bernardi
- Giulio Paolini
- Giovanni Anselmo
- Fabio Mauri
- Cesare Tacchi
- Andrea Mastrovito
- Marinella Senatore
- Eugenio Tibaldi
- Gian Maria Tosatti
- Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev
- Germano Celant
- Daniela Lancioni
- Santa Nastro
Institutions
- Galleria La Tartaruga
- Teatro delle Mostre
- Castello di Rivoli Museo d’Arte Contemporanea
- Hauser & Wirth
- Palazzo delle Esposizioni
- Istituto Italiano di Cultura di New York
- Magazzino Italian Art
- Istituto Italiano di Pretoria
- Ministero degli Esteri (Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
- Galleria Nazionale di Roma
- Fondazione Giulio e Anna Paolini
- Artribune
Locations
- Italy
- New York
- Johannesburg
- Cape Town
- Rome
- Pretoria
- Rivoli