The section of historical Masters of the Twentieth Century, ideal foundation and original core of the wide permanent collection, is proposed through a selection of works representing the particular propensity of Giulio Bargellini for collecting. Intrigued by the artistic researches of the entire last century, he approached to Italian art of the Twentieth Century with a free spirit, appreciating both figurative paths and the non-iconic line.
From the last echoes of the last Nineteen Century, through the early avant-garde, the “return to order”, the intimist declinations and the more experimental ones of the second postwar period, the collection combines works of different authors who played a leading role in the development of visual culture of the Twentieth Century. Their names give us back the echoes of the main groups and movements that have marked the Italian cultural debate until the Seventies, their works establish a visual narration about the variety of researches and expressive means, between tradition and experimentation.
Among the authors there are Afro, Antonio Alciati, Giacomo Balla, Renato Birolli, Giovanni Boldini, Aroldo Bonzagni, Alberto Burri, Massimo Campigli, Giuseppe Capogrossi, Carlo Carrà, Felice Casorati, Bruno Cassinari, Giorgio De Chirico, Raffaele De Grada, Angelo del Bon, Fortunato Depero, Gherardo Dottori, Gianni Dova, Riccardo Francalancia, Franco Gentilini, Giuseppe Guerreschi, Virgilio Guidi, Renato Guttuso, Carlo Levi, Antonio Ligabue, Mario Mafai, Alberto MAgnelli, Francesco Menzio, Mirko, Amedeo Modigliani, Mattia Moreni, Ennio Morlotti, Fausto Pirandello, Concetto Pozzati, Enrico Prampolini, Bruno Saetti, Aligi Sassu, Alberto Savinio, Emilio Scanavino, Toti Scialoja, Gino Severini, Mario Sironi, Atanasio Soldati, Mario Tozzi, Emilio Vedova, Renato Vernizzi, Zoran Music.
The occasion to show in the same hall works of different historical periods reveals deep weaves, underlying memories, reminders of shapes and declinations of colors, and so this expository method, which occurred unexpectedly, turns out to be fully coherent with the vocation of the museum and with its projects.