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Fernanda Wittgens: Brera 1950

The video of the first dialogue of Lo Schermo Bianco (The White Screen), a series of dialogues that focused on the major changes that affected museums starting after World War II, is now available: four appointments curated by Fondazione Federico Zeri and Associazione Amici di Federico Zeri, hosted by Fondazione Luigi Rovati.

Nov. 6, 2022
Fernanda Wittgens: Brera 1950

With:
Giovanna Ginex - Art historian and curator
Marcello Calogero - Federico Zeri Foundation

In the years of the economic miracle, architectural rationalism bathed artworks in a new light and space. Minimal geometries, very clear backgrounds, and movable panels changed the perception of objects, their form and color. Leading the postwar reconstruction, museum directors of the 1950s found themselves making decisions that would long define the shape of picture galleries and art galleries.

Collaboration between art historians and architects was intense. Fernanda Wittgens, Carlo Scarpa, Franca Helg, Franco Albini, and Caterina Marcenaro are just a few of the protagonists of this capital season of Italian and international museology. But the dialogue was not easy. A fear soon arose that architecture would take center stage, confining the works - the real protagonists - to a paradoxical background. Dwelling on this conflict between container and content is perhaps the best way to reflect on today's layouts and the relationship between museums and temporary exhibitions.