Philippe Duboÿ, CARLO SCARPA L’ARTE DI ESPORRE, 2016

The name of Carlo Scarpa (1906-1978) is intrinsically linked to the history of art, taste and museography of the twentieth century, so much that in the seventies the French art historian André Chastel wrote: “Many of those who travel to Italy know him without knowing it: it is the greatest set up of art exhibitions there and perhaps in all of Europe”. Even today he occupies a place of honor in the pantheon of those who – despite the strong resistance and provincialism widespread at the time – revolutionized museums after the war, transforming them into avant-garde outposts. After the resounding success of the system conceived to house Paul Klee’s work at the 1948 Biennale, many others followed in rapid succession. The monographic exhibitions of Piet Mondrian and Marcel Duchamp, the collaborations with Lucio Fontana and Arturo Martini and the interventions on numerous historical monuments trace the path of an original architect who was able to modernize the way of exhibiting by imposing a model that, with almost insolent freedom and incomparable poetry, frees itself from the bombast of pre-existing places, favoring a bare and light style. His career abounds in legendary solutions found in situ, always in urgency and despite a great deal of money, in symbiosis with the mastery of the artisans who surround him.