Ritratto di donna.
Il sogno degli anni Venti
e lo sguardo di Ubaldo Oppi

Vicenza, Basilica palladiana, 6 December 2019 - 3 May 2020
Curated by Stefania Portinari

Stefania Portinari is an art historian, professor of Contemporary Art History at the Ca’ Foscari University of Venice. Responsible for editorial collections of a scientific nature and referee for national and international research projects, she is also involved in curating exhibitions and art criticism: she has organized over thirty exhibitions and written for catalogs and magazines. She collaborates with museums and institutions, private galleries and public bodies for exhibitions, meetings and conferences.

Her scientific activity particularly concerns the history of twentieth century art, the history of the Venice Biennale, the history of Venetian art of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the history of exhibitions and cultural studies, the history of contemporary architecture, the history of decorative arts and design, visual poetry, the history of contemporary collecting, the history of video and the performing arts.

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This exhibition is a fascinating story, articulated by intense portraits of women.

It presents the stories of artists who have been able to create magnificent masterpieces, also evoking the memories of Classicism and the Renaissance.

The 1920s are thrilled with a sense of modernity and change. Ubaldo Oppi is an absolute protagonist. He is one of the most famous painters between Europe and the United States: his works are purchased in fabulous collections. Together with him, other fascinating characters stand out in the art scene among scandals and clamor.

We will travel together on a journey that even begins with the suggestions of the Viennese Secession, in which women are portrayed as maidens, graceful nymphs or daring seducers, as if they were in a fairy tale; we will look at the Parisian Picasso, the bohemian life of Modigliani, and we will arrive at the heart of a period that believed in a new destiny, where powerful characters move, deciding the fortunes of art, like Margherita Sarfatti.

Beautiful dresses, jewels, exotic images, travel desires and loves pervade that moment.
This exhibition, which is also part of a complex three-year project of historical and artistic enhancement of the city of Vicenza and of cultural management, wants to display the magic that only art can create.

Let's discover those dreams together: I look forward to seeing you!

Stefania Portinari
Curator of the exhibition