Metaphysics/Metaphysics: Milan at the center of twentieth-century art with a major widespread exhibition

From January 28 to June 21, 2026, Milan hosts one of the most ambitious cultural projects of the year: Metaphysics/Metaphysics, a major widespread exhibition involving Palazzo Reale, Museo del Novecento, Gallerie d'Italia and the Grande Brera - Palazzo Citterio.

Curated by Vincenzo Trione, the project puts the masters of Metaphysics in dialogue with artists, architects and creatives of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, transforming the city into a true urban cultural itinerary. The initiative is part of the cultural program of the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games, strengthening Milan's role as the international capital of art and thought.

The great exhibition at Palazzo Reale

The heart of the project is the exhibition at Palazzo Reale, which presents about 400 works including paintings, sculptures, drawings, photographs, design objects, architectural models and audiovisual materials, from over 150 international institutions and collections. The itinerary traces the birth of Metaphysics in Ferrara in 1917 and the contribution of its protagonists: Giorgio de Chirico, Alberto Savinio, Carlo Carrà, Giorgio Morandi and Filippo de Pisis.

Alongside the historical core, the exhibition explores the legacy of Metaphysics in Europe and the United States, highlighting its influence on different artists and languages, from visual art to cinema, from photography to fashion.

The "chapters" in the city's museums

 

The Museo del Novecento offers a focus on the relationship between Metaphysics and Milan, investigating the link between its protagonists and the city through drawings, archival materials and theatrical sketches also linked to the Teatro alla Scala and the Triennale di Milano.

 

At the Gallerie d'Italia, a tribute to Morandi takes shape in the photographs by Gianni Berengo Gardin, dedicated to the painter's Bolognese atelier. At the Grande Brera - Palazzo Citterio, the contemporary artist William Kentridge signs an unprecedented intervention that poetically reinterprets the Morandian universe with a video installation and a series of sculptures.

 

A cultural and tourist experience in the heart of Milan

 

Metaphysics/Metaphysics invites citizens and visitors to experience Milan as a widespread museum, walking through the historic center, from Piazza Duomo to Brera, between art, architecture and contemporary visions. A high-profile cultural proposal that enriches the city's tourist offer and strengthens its international attractiveness.