Napoli Exhibition Recreates 1980s New York Art Scene

An exhibition titled 'Le mille luci di New York' (The Thousand Lights of New York) is on view at Gallerie d'Italia – Palazzo Zevallos Stigliano in Naples, organized by Banca Intesa Sanpaolo. Curated by Luca Beatrice, the show evokes the excess and transgression of 1980s New York, as described in Jay McInerney's 1984 novel 'Bright Lights, Big City'. It features works by five key artists of the decade: Jean-Michel Basquiat (including 'Skull', 1984), Francesco Clemente, Keith Haring, Julian Schnabel, and Andy Warhol. Warhol's pieces include 'Vesuvius (rosso)' and 'Vesuvius (nero)' from 1985, inspired by the Campania region and his collaboration with Neapolitan gallerist Lucio Amelio. The exhibition highlights the transatlantic connections between Italy and New York, with Clemente moving to New York and Haring traveling to Rome, Milan, Naples, and Pisa. Basquiat and Haring, as graffiti artists, are seen as symbols of a shift from elitism to popular simplification. Schnabel, known for his eclectic painting, later directed a 1996 film about Basquiat. The show focuses on the return to painting after a period dominated by neo-avant-gardes.