Spaces Reborn. Collecting the Ancient / Installing the Contemporary | Palazzo Butera

Now available on Fondazione Luigi Rovati's YouTube channel is the video of the conference dedicated to Palazzo Butera. Collezione Francesca e Massimo Valsecchi  part of Spazi rinati. Collecting the Ancient/Installing the Contemporary, a series of lectures produced in collaboration with Fondazione Federico Zeri.

November 22, 2023 - Fondazione Luigi Rovati

with Claudio Gulli e Francesco Guzzetti

Four historic palaces, located in as many Italian cities, become witnesses to an evolution in the world of museography and collecting.

The Fondazione Luigi Rovati in Milan, Palazzo Maffei in Verona, Palazzo Bentivoglio in Bologna and Palazzo Butera in Palermo, although born from different contexts and histories, share a common vision: the recovery of historic buildings in the heart of cities and the attempt to make contemporary works of art coexist with the figurative heritage of the past.

A dynamic coexistence that results in a lively dialogue between eras, generating a series of resonances and interconnections. From ancient Etruscan urns to the visionary art of Lucio Fontana, from Renaissance Venetian painting to Surrealism, from 19th-century design to the works of Tom Phillips, from Felice Giani to the site-specific interventions of Giulio Paolini and David Tremlett.

In this series of meetings, a group of curators, art historians and collectors investigate the complex issues related to architectural rehabilitation, aesthetic choices and permanent installations in historic buildings. At the center of the debate are different interpretations of what is meant by a House Museum today and how to integrate spaces for contemporary art within it.

The project is curated by Fondazione Federico Zeri and Associazione degli Amici di Federico Zeri, in collaboration with Fondazione Luigi Rovati.