Report's second episode on Futurism show cancelled after Boccioni sculpture dispute

The second episode of the Italian investigative program Report, scheduled for December 1, 2024, was cancelled after a dispute over the loan of Umberto Boccioni's sculpture "Forme uniche della continuità nello spazio" for the Futurism exhibition at the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea (GNAM) in Rome. The sculpture, a 2011 surmoulage from the Roberto Bilotti collection, was initially offered but faced complications due to a misidentification by a Soprintendenza official in Calabria, leading to a Carabinieri investigation that was later dismissed. The Ministry of Culture imposed conditions for the loan, including a controversial didactic label calling the work a "riproduzione" or "oggetto tattile," which Bilotti contested. Curator Gabriele Simongini communicated that the decision came from DG Musei director Massimo Osanna. Bilotti eventually agreed to the loan after Osanna promised a standard label. The Report episode was dropped after Bilotti consented to the loan, leading journalist Alberto Dambruoso to accuse him of using the program as leverage. The exhibition, heavily politicized, opened without the Boccioni sculpture.