MAGA Museum Celebrates 50 Years with London Exhibition at Italian Cultural Institute

The Museo Arte Gallarate (Ma*GA) is presenting a group exhibition titled 'Raccontare il presente' at the Italian Cultural Institute in London, running until October 20. The show features works by five young Italian artists—Riccardo Arena, Luca Bertolo, Marzia Migliora, Luigi Presicce, and Moira Ricci—selected from the museum's collection, which originates from the historic Premio Gallarate. The prize was conceived in 1949 by the Associazione Universitari Gallaratesi, led by Silvio Zanella, to build a museum collection. Its first edition in 1950 was organized by Ettore Gian Ferrari and awarded artists such as Atanasio Soldati, Afro, Enrico Prampolini, Giuseppe Santomaso, Bruno Cassinari, and Carlo Carrà. Now in its 25th edition, the prize has amassed a significant collection housed in the museum's renovated space since 2010. The London exhibition, curated by Alessandro Castiglioni and museum director Emma Zanella, focuses on works created between 2009 and 2016. Zanella praised the Italian Cultural Institute in London, under the direction of Marco Delogu, for its dynamic exhibition program. This initiative strengthens Ma*GA's international presence, following a recent Missoni exhibition at the Fashion and Textile Museum in London and a co-production with the Musée d'Art Moderne de Saint-Étienne for a solo show by Gianni Caravaggio.