Crescendo

Crescendo is the title and the keyword of the 27th edition of miart (April 14–16, 2023 / VIP preview April 13)—Milan’s international modern and contemporary art fair, organised by Fiera Milano and directed by Nicola Ricciardi. In musical language, the expression refers to a gradual increase of sound intensity. In relation to miart, the term suggests the fair’s progressive growth over the past two editions, and a desire to pursue this upward trajectory furthermore in 2024.

In 2023, with the participation of 169 galleries from 27 countries, the international group of exhibitors increased by 40 percent, also thanks to significant new entries like, Kendall Koppe (Glasgow), Nino Mier Gallery (Los Angeles, Brussels, New York, Marfa), Perrotin (Paris, New York, Hong Kong, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai), Chris Sharp Gallery (Los Angeles), Esther Schipper (Berlin, Paris, Seoul), Galerie Gregor Staiger (Zurich, Milan), Tim Van Laere Gallery (Antwerp) and Galerie Jocelyn Wolff (Paris), to name but a few. In addition, the total of awards, commissions and acquisition funds within the fair doubled, and there will be an unprecedented number of collateral projects involving the city and its institutions.

For the first time, the content of the fair will extend beyond traditional boundaries to reach and contaminate other venues in the city centre, starting with Triennale Milano, which will host a series of conversations on and around the ability of art of transcending conventional forms and intersect with other fields and disciplines. The talks series, titled miart LIVE at Triennale Milano, takes place on Saturday April 15 and features renowned figures in the cultural sphere such as Massimiliano Gioni and Beatrice Trussardi, Jonathan Monk and Angharad Williams, Gianni Pettena and Italo Rota. The partnership between miart and Triennale Milano is further reinforced by a new edition of FOG—Triennale Milano Performig Arts which, during the days of the fair, will present two Italian premieres: How a Falling Star Lit Up The Purple Sky by Jeremy Nedd and Impilo Mapantsula (April 12 and 13); and Le sacre du printemps, a choreographic research by Dewey Dell inspired by Igor Stravinskij’s masterpiece (April 15 and 16).

Also noteworthy is the collaboration with Fondazione Nicola Trussardi. This year the foundation marks its 20th anniversary as a nomadic museum and commence its celebrations on April 13, when Beatrice Trussardi and Massimiliano Gioni will invite the public to participate in cutting a cake, generously donated by Maurizio Cattelan, inside miart.

The circulation of content within and beyond the fair is thus reinforced by the novel partnership with the fashion brand MSGM which has commissioned a site-specific installation inside miart by the artist duo Eva & Franco Mattes. The work is made up of digital channels that enable the transmission of data and features a secret image that is sent to random passers-by via AirDrop.

The synergies between private and public spheres of art are further addressed in a renewed edition of the Milano Art Week (April 11–16), the widespread event coordinated by miart and the Culture Department of Milan City Council. During the week, several exhibitions will open at the city’s primary venues.  Among them: Ann Veronica Janssens’ solo show at Pirelli HangarBicocca; Dara Birnbaum’s exhibition at Osservatorio Fondazione Prada; Candice Lin at GAM Galleria d’Arte Moderna in collaboration with Fondazione Arnaldo Pomodoro; Yuri Ancarani’s solo show at PAC; and Forum 900 at Museo del Novecento, which transforms the large gallery spaces into a place for discussions. Lastly, there will be no shortage of initiatives dedicated to public art including the inauguration of new works by Rossella Biscotti, Liliana Moro, Otobong Nkanga at ArtLine, the site-specific contemporary art path set in the Citylife park, Franco Mazzucchelli’s double installation displayed both at Triennale Milano and in Darsena, and, on the façade of Triennale building, there a new monumental installation by Nico Vascellari.