The End of the World

In only four months since its opening—and less than two weeks before the end of the exhibition The End of the World—the Luigi Pecci Centre for Contemporary Art in Prato has welcomed over 55,000 visitors.

From October 14, 2016, thousands of people visited the Centre and the exhibition The End of the World, curated by the director Fabio Cavallucci. The public had the chance to admire not only the new architectural look of the Centre (designed by the Dutch architect Maurice Nio) but also the large installations of a number of great contemporary artists from Thomas Hirschhorn to Henrique Oliveira, from Carlos Garaicoa to Cai Guo-Qiang’s wolves; pieces by the masters of the last century such as Picasso, Fontana and Boccioni; as well as the important inclusion of works by emerging artists from all over including Eastern Europe and the Middle East. As was the intent of the curator, the exhibition has proven to serve as a sort of avant garde manner of research. It does so in an engaging and inclusive manner which allows spectators to appreciate it, even those who are not particularly accustomed to or familiar with contemporary art.

With regard to the interdisciplinary mission, in just four months the Pecci Centre has managed to organise 112 events including conferences, performances, film screenings and musical events. Among the various activities, 18 successful meetings and debates have developed the themes of the inaugural exhibition from a scientific, philosophical and literary perspective, including lectures from prominent figures such as sociologist Zygmunt Bauman, anthropologist Marc Augé and climatologist Luca Mercalli, as well a cinema debate with the writer Sandro Veronesi.

Furthermore, the Pecci Centre has offered a second edition of courses for collectors and gallery owners—Art Market Today—with experts of great stature such as Viktor Misiano, Morad Montazami, Pier Luigi Tazzi. Regarding the educational field, guided tours and workshops for children of all ages and adults have been organised in addition to the Pecci School programme, a series of evening lessons dedicated to the most important figures of the 20th century from a variety of fields including art history, music, theatre and cinema.

The exhibition The End of the World will run until the March 19.