Jacques Henri Lartigue's Photographs Enter Dialogue with Museo Bagatti Valsecchi

At Museo Bagatti Valsecchi in Milan, curator Angela Madesani has arranged a selection of Jacques Henri Lartigue's photographs throughout the historic rooms, creating a spatial dialogue between the Belle Époque images and the museum's dense collection of objects. Lartigue (1894–1986), a French painter who considered photography a secondary pursuit, gained fame after a 1963 MoMA exhibition. The show features mostly 1920s prints, including portraits, seductive female nudes, and scenes of high-society leisure—cars, horses, and the Côte d'Azur. A final room highlights the lightness of his gaze, with color shots that reveal his influence on Wes Anderson, who drew inspiration from Lartigue's brother for the protagonist of 'The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou'. The exhibition subverts expectations of nostalgia, proving unexpectedly engaging.