From October 9, 2026, to January 24, 2027, Palazzo Reale in Milan presents *Picabia: Opening the Doors of the Night*, an exhibition billed as the most comprehensive survey in Italy dedicated to Francis Picabia (1879–1953). Curated by the artist’s great-granddaughter, author Anne Berest Picabia, the exhibition is sponsored by the City of Milan – Culture and co-produced by Palazzo Reale and MADEINART, with the support of the Consulate General of France and the Institut Français.
Born in Paris, Picabia lived and worked in both Europe and the United States, coming into contact with figures such as Marcel Duchamp, Gertrude Stein, and Pablo Picasso. His artistic exploration spanned Impressionism, Fauvism, Cubism, Dada, and abstraction, making transformation one of the central elements of his artistic journey.
The exhibition brings together over 170 works from major European museums and international collections, alongside rare loans from the Picabia family. Photographs, correspondence, personal documents, and vintage albums round out the exhibition, offering insights into the artist’s life and creative process. The project also benefits from the scholarly contribution of the Comité Picabia.
The exhibition does not follow a conventional chronology but organizes the display around the ideas, obsessions, and experiences that characterized Picabia’s artistic exploration. Love, dance, and music; his Spanish origins; war; and collective creation are presented as interconnected themes, highlighting his rejection of fixed identities, styles, and categories. The night, evoked by the title, serves as the central theme of the project: a space associated with freedom, uncertainty, and transformation, where established rules can be suspended and new forms can emerge.
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| Francis Picabia: Over 170 Works at Palazzo Reale for the Most Comprehensive Exhibition in Italy |
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