ARTFEED — Contemporary Art Intelligence

Matt Mullican's Largest Retrospective Opens at Pirelli HangarBicocca

exhibition · 2026-05-04

Pirelli HangarBicocca in Milan is hosting 'The Feeling of the Things', a comprehensive retrospective of Matt Mullican, who was born in Santa Monica in 1951 and is curated by Roberta Tenconi. Covering an area of 5,000 square meters, the exhibit showcases Mullican's 'M.I.T. Project' and features more than six thousand items obtained from Milan's Museo di Storia Naturale and Museo della Scienza e della Tecnologia Leonardo da Vinci. Among the highlighted pieces is 'Untitled' (1990), which displays banners symbolizing the 'Five Worlds'. The exhibition delves into Mullican's personal history, referencing his mother, Venezuelan surrealist Luchita Hurtado, and father, American artist Lee Mullican, as well as his fixation illustrated by 'Dallas Project', a tumultuous installation comprising over four hundred black-and-white rubbings.

Key facts

  • Exhibition 'The Feeling of the Things' is the largest retrospective on Matt Mullican.
  • Curated by Roberta Tenconi at Pirelli HangarBicocca, Milan.
  • Occupies 5,000 square meters in the Navate and Cubo spaces.
  • Mullican expands his M.I.T. Project from the 1990s.
  • Features over six thousand objects from Milan's natural history and science museums.
  • Includes works from the early 1970s to today.
  • Mullican uses hypnosis as performance, with alter ego 'That Person'.
  • The 'Five Worlds' color-coded system is central to his cosmology.

Entities

Artists

  • Matt Mullican
  • Luchita Hurtado
  • Lee Mullican

Institutions

  • Pirelli HangarBicocca
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • Museo di Storia Naturale di Milano
  • Museo della Scienza e della Tecnologia Leonardo da Vinci
  • Le Magasin
  • Mai 36 Galerie

Locations

  • Milan
  • Italy
  • Santa Monica
  • Grenoble
  • Zurich
  • Switzerland

Sources