Renowned for her extraordinary intuition and foresight in discovering, championing, and launching artists who would go on to shape the history of contemporary art, Ileana Sonnabend was among the most influential gallerists and collectors of the post-war era. She bridged Europe and the United States, fostering continuous dialogue between artists, movements, and institutions across the Atlantic.

Through critical essays by Mario Codognato and Giorgia Gastaldon, this catalogue examines Ileana’s seminal role in elevating Italian art to an international stage. From her early sojourns in Rome during the 1960s to her international promotion of artists such as Mario Schifano and Michelangelo Pistoletto, and culminating in her vital support of Arte Povera, the publication underscores her decisive impact on circulating Italian artistic research worldwide.

Turning to the American vanguard, Mirta d’Argenzio’s essay investigates the formative roles played by Robert Rauschenberg, Cy Twombly, and Jasper Johns in shaping the Sonnabend Collection. Eduardo Cicelyn’s focus subsequently explores the collector’s relationship with the Museo Madre in Naples, exemplifying her vision of the exhibition space as a dynamic site for dialogue and the active construction of the contemporary. Featuring over fifty works by artists including Giovanni Anselmo, Jasper Johns, Jeff Koons, Jannis Kounellis, Roy Lichtenstein, Mario Merz, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Robert Rauschenberg, Mario Schifano, Andy Warhol, and Gilberto Zorio, this collection testifies to an enduring legacy that helped define the international canon of contemporary art.