Italian Council 2026: Winners Announced for Category 1

Twelve projects have been selectedin Area 1 – International Art Commissioning ofthe 15th edition of Italian Council, the program promoted by the Directorate General for Contemporary Creativity of the Ministry of Culture to support Italian contemporary creativity and dedicated to the international promotion of Italian art, artistic research, criticism, and curation.

The list of winners was published on July 3, 2026, following the evaluation of the 27 applications submitted for this section of the call for proposals. Area 1 supports the production of new works through collaborations between Italian entities and international partners, with the aim of fostering the circulation of contemporary artistic research and the inclusion of these works in Italian public collections. The winners of Category 2 (International Promotion of Artists, Curators, and Critics) and Category 3 (Talent Development) will be announced at a later date. Here are the winners:

• Blu Breeding and Learning Unit (Italy) in partnership with the Museo de Arte Moderno de Buenos Aires (Argentina) for theproject *Il Santuario dell’Acqua – Sanctuary of Water* by Tomás Saraceno, to be presented at the Castello di Rivoli Museum of Contemporary Art in Rivoli (Turin)

• Almare (Italy) in collaboration with Associació Amici del Videoart (Spain) and IUNO APS (Italy) with theproject *ELISABETTA* by Michela de Mattei, to be presented at the GAMeC – Galleria d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea in Bergamo

• Yayasan Gudskul Studi Kolektif (Indonesia) with theproject *Marzuki’s Violin (Working Title)* by Paola Pietronave, commissioned for the “Empedocle Restivo” Civic Gallery of Modern Art of the City of Palermo for the Ecomuseo del Mare Memoria Viva

• Fundación TBA21 (Spain), in collaboration with E-Werk Luckenwalde (Germany) and the Alligator Head Foundation (Jamaica), with theproject “Future Landscape of Sonic Reparation” by Marco Barotti, intended for the Luigi Pecci Center for Contemporary Art in Prato

• Blue Cheese Project (Italy) in collaboration with IFA – Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen Galerie Berlin (Germany) with theproject “The Traveling Garden” by Theo Eshetu, intended for the Nivola Museum, Orani (Nuoro)

• Careof APS (Italy) in partnership with the International Studio & Curatorial Program (ISCP) (United States) for theproject *Animalia* by Daniele Costa, to be presented at the Museo Novecento – Musei Civici Fiorentini, Florence

• Associazione Tilia (Italy) in collaboration with Tabacalera (Spain) for theproject *Cautha* by Diego Gualandris, intended for the Foundation for Contemporary Arts in Tuscany – Luigi Pecci Center for Contemporary Art, Prato

• Bologna Civic Museums | MAMbo – Museum of Modern Art of Bologna (Italy) in partnership with Magazzino Italian Art (United States) for theproject *Mario Airò. Atlante delle risonanze* by Mario Airò, to be presented at the Museo del Novecento, Milan

• That’s Contemporary S.R.L. Social Enterprise (Italy) in collaboration with Alternatives Européennes (Transeuropa Festival) (France) and Ca’ Foscari University (Italy) with theproject NUA, a collective performance in the sea by Benedetta Panisson, to be presented at the Mart – Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Trento and Rovereto

• Servizio 26 – Regional Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Palermo (Italy) with the University of Málaga – MuCAC in Málaga (Spain) and the Kamel Lazaar Foundation for Art and Culture (Tunisia) with theproject Fantasia | Song of Dust by Gio Peres, intended for the Regional Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Palermo (Museo Riso)

• The Blank Contemporary Art (Italy) with Istanbul Modern (Turkey) for theproject *Cartography of a Restless Sea. Textile Allegories and Global Currents* by Ismaele Nones, intended for the MAC – Museum of Contemporary Art in Lissone

• Sineglossa (Italy) with Stichting Waag Society (Waag Futurelab) (Netherlands) with theproject *I’ve seen the future* by Roberto Fassone, intended for the Mart – Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Trento and Rovereto

Italian Council 2026: Winners Announced for Category 1

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