Ottavio Missoni's Paintings Revealed at Milan Gallery

A Milan gallery has revealed that Ottavio Missoni, the legendary fashion designer and Olympic athlete, was also a painter. The discovery came during Museocity 2025 at Galleria 10 A.M. Art, which exhibited Missoni's acrylic works from the 1970s alongside pieces by Franco Giuli and Piero Dorazio. Missoni's abstract, neo-constructivist paintings, dated to the 1970s, show the same geometric forms and colors as his iconic textiles. The gallery's show, "Struttura, materia e colore. Franco Giuli con Piero Dorazio 1969-1975," included Missoni's paintings, garments, and fabric swatches, highlighting the dialogue between fashion and art. Missoni's fashion pieces have long been in museum collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Fine Arts in Dallas, and the Museum of Costume in Bath. In 1975, a show at Galleria d'Arte Il Naviglio in Venice presented his fabrics framed like paintings. A 1978 exhibition at Milan's Rotonda della Besana traveled to the Whitney Museum of American Art. The gallery plans a new exhibition on Missoni's artistic ties for late 2025.