ALBERTO GIACOMETTI E L’ITALIA
Palazzo Reale, Milano 
From February 25, 2027 to June 20, 2027
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More than thirty years on from the last major exhibition, Alberto Giacometti returns as the protagonist at Palazzo Reale in Milan from February 25 to June 20, 2027, with the exhibition «ALBERTO GIACOMETTI E L’ITALIA». Promoted by the Comune di Milano – Cultura, conceived by the Fondation Giacometti in Paris, and produced by Palazzo Reale with Marsilio Arte, the retrospective is curated by Romain Perrin, Head of sculpture collection, exhibition curator at the Fondation Giacometti, and explores the profound artistic and sentimental bond that united the sculptor to the Peninsula, offering an unprecedented perspective with rigorous and specific comparisons.
The itinerary reinterprets the master’s evolution through his Italian “intimate geography.” Born in Switzerland in the Canton of Grisons, near the border with Lombardy, in 1901, Giacometti had Italian as his mother tongue; his father Giovanni, a Neo-Impressionist painter, also passed on to him a classical culture that made the Peninsula a dreamed land. Origins, mother tongue, and classical heritage made Italy a constant source of inspiration for Giacometti, who in a 1920 letter did not hesitate to define it as his «new homeland». The frequency of his travels, the force of attraction exerted by Italian culture, the human experiences, and the friendships formed in the Bel Paese decisively shaped his personal and artistic trajectory. As curator Romain Perrin highlights: «Italy occupies an essential place in Giacometti’s identity and path: language, cultural background, travels, relationships, and exhibitions make it a country in its own right. This retrospective allows us to reread his sculpture in light of what Italy gave him, both on a human and creative level».
The itinerary reinterprets the master’s evolution through his Italian “intimate geography.” Born in Switzerland in the Canton of Grisons, near the border with Lombardy, in 1901, Giacometti had Italian as his mother tongue; his father Giovanni, a Neo-Impressionist painter, also passed on to him a classical culture that made the Peninsula a dreamed land. Origins, mother tongue, and classical heritage made Italy a constant source of inspiration for Giacometti, who in a 1920 letter did not hesitate to define it as his «new homeland». The frequency of his travels, the force of attraction exerted by Italian culture, the human experiences, and the friendships formed in the Bel Paese decisively shaped his personal and artistic trajectory. As curator Romain Perrin highlights: «Italy occupies an essential place in Giacometti’s identity and path: language, cultural background, travels, relationships, and exhibitions make it a country in its own right. This retrospective allows us to reread his sculpture in light of what Italy gave him, both on a human and creative level».
The retrospective brings together over one hundred works, including sculptures, paintings, and exceptional drawings from the Fondation Giacometti, alongside rich and previously unpublished archival documentation, with the scientific advice of Casimiro Di Crescenzo, art historian with a long-standing interest in Giacometti’s work. The itinerary highlights iconic masterpieces with strong symbolic value: from the famous The Walking Man to works with an unusual and deep connection with Italy, such as The Nose (1949) or the Bust of Man (Chiavenna II) (1964), conceived in the Lombard town of Chiavenna in the last years of the artist’s life. Through focused sections, the exhibition marks the salient stages of his research: from the discovery of Antiquity during his youthful stays in Florence, Rome, and Naples, to the Cubist-influenced sculptures exhibited in Paris in 1928 alongside Italian artists, up to his final consecration at the 1962 Venice Biennale with the Grand Prize for Sculpture.