Conceived as a narrative journey through Italian abstract-geometric art from the 1930s to the 1960s, "A distant utopia. Geometric abstraction in Italy 1930-1965", the exhibition hosted by the MAGA Museum in Gallarate, Milan, showcases works from the museum's collection and institutions such as the Gallery Moshe Tabibnia in Milan, the Angelo Bozzola Foundation in Novara and the JSA Manufacture in Busto Arsizio.
The display, curated by Alessandro Castiglioni, highlights the multidisciplinary nature of the Concretista project in its capability to go beyond the boundaries of the visual arts and enter into a dialogue between literature, architecture, and design.
With a particular focus on the areas of Como and Milan, the exhibition opens with an analysis of the abstractionist experimentation that developed between the two World Wars through the works of Mario Radice and Atanasio Soldati, while photographic contributions document particularly significant buildings.
The second part of the exhibition revolves around the creation of the MAC in 1948 by Gillo Dorfles, Bruno Munari, Atanasio Soldati and Gianni Monnet: a historic moment of extraordinary importance for the birth of concretista's abstract pictorial language in Italy and its connections with design, architecture and the aesthetic redefinition of taste.
The third part of the exhibition looks into the developments of the MAC following its transformation between 1952 and 1953 and the development of abstractionism in Italy until the movement's definitive dissolution in 1958. In this context, it explores the relationships between the emerging industrial design, furniture and object production.
The display, curated by Alessandro Castiglioni, highlights the multidisciplinary nature of the Concretista project in its capability to go beyond the boundaries of the visual arts and enter into a dialogue between literature, architecture, and design.
With a particular focus on the areas of Como and Milan, the exhibition opens with an analysis of the abstractionist experimentation that developed between the two World Wars through the works of Mario Radice and Atanasio Soldati, while photographic contributions document particularly significant buildings.
The second part of the exhibition revolves around the creation of the MAC in 1948 by Gillo Dorfles, Bruno Munari, Atanasio Soldati and Gianni Monnet: a historic moment of extraordinary importance for the birth of concretista's abstract pictorial language in Italy and its connections with design, architecture and the aesthetic redefinition of taste.
The third part of the exhibition looks into the developments of the MAC following its transformation between 1952 and 1953 and the development of abstractionism in Italy until the movement's definitive dissolution in 1958. In this context, it explores the relationships between the emerging industrial design, furniture and object production.
The journey ends with a focus on textile production. Selected pieces include some exceptional examples of decorative precious textiles made by Italian abstract artists in collaboration with Lombard industries, and in particular two tapestries made by the Atelier d'Arte Tessile Elio Palmisano from the Moshe Tabibnia’s collection: "Abstract composition" by Mauro Reggiani and "Focus" by Luigi Veronesi.
