With the exhibition “Neoclassical and Romantic. Pompeo Marchesi, sculptor and collector”, GAM | Galleria d'Arte Moderna carries on the promotion of some of the most significant nucleuses of its collections.
The exhibition, set up on the ground floor of Villa Reale from the 1th of March to the 18th of June 2023, is promoted by the Municipality of Milan and is curated by Omar Cucciniello, curator of GAM.
“Neoclassical and Romantic” is dedicated to the figure of Pompeo Marchesi (1783-1858), a great sculptor of the 19th century, trait d'union between Neoclassicism and Romanticism, in the lively environment of Milan between the Napoleonic Empire and the Restoration. He was also a refined collector closely linked to the history of Milan's civic museums: donated to the city, his collection constitutes the beginnings of the civic art collections and the founding nucleus of the Modern Art Gallery, which holds much of his material legacy.
Through the works from his studio, the complexity of the collection and its importance for the birth of the city's art collections are reconstructed, making use of the contributions of the civic institutes: the Cabinet of Drawings, the Raccolta delle Stampe “Achille Bertarelli”, the Art Library, the Civic Photographic Archive and the Museum of Ancient Art at Castello Sforzesco. The sculptures by Marchesi in the Modern Art Gallery are thus juxtaposed for the first time with a selection of paintings, drawings, engravings and books by Marchesi himself and by several artists close to him, enhancing the richness and variety of Milan's civic collections. Research work has made it possible to propose new attributions, make discoveries and rediscover works believed to have been lost.
The exhibition is also an opportunity to show the results of an extensive restoration campaign on Marchesi's sculptures, sketches and terracottas - with particular reference to the city's main enterprises. The restored works are thus juxtaposed with preparatory drawings, sketches and engravings by the artist, as well as previously unpublished and never exhibited works from the deposits of the Modern Art Gallery.
The catalog is published by Officina Libraria.
Neoclassical and Romantic. Pompeo Marchesi, sculptor and collector.
