Info
- Dates: 26.02.25 – 22.06.25
- Curator: Tere Arcq e Carlos Martín
- Where: Palazzo Reale Milano
- Price: 15 euros / 13-10 euros reduced
Palazzo Reale dedicates a major retrospective to the life and career of the extraordinary artist and personality that was Leonor Fini. The exhibition retraces her journey from the very beginning, weaving in rich biographical details that help frame her unique vision. Born in Buenos Aires to an Argentine father and an Italian mother, Fini was soon brought to Italy, where she grew up in Trieste, a city shaped by the Mittle European cultural atmosphere.
Fini’s life was marked by independence, self-invention, and an unshakable artistic identity. Thanks to her strong character and singular imagination, she quickly became known across Europe for her enigmatic and powerful works. Her photographic portraits in the exhibition testify her notoriety and uniqueness.
“I am a painter. When people ask me how I do it, I answer: ‘I am’ “
-Leonor Fini
Organized thematically, the exhibition reflects the key obsessions and iconographies of her career. It opens with a dive into Fini’s fantastical world of sphinxes and hybrid beings—mystical creatures that recur throughout her oeuvre—before moving into her exploration of femininity and female empowerment. Another section is dedicated to the erotic, and one to her recurring fascination with androgynous and non-binary figures. The exhibition design plays a vital role here: each thematic section is color-coded, creating an immersive experience that guides the viewer through Fini’s shifting universes.
Rich and multi-layered, the exhibition goes far beyond paintings. It includes her illustrations for literary masterpieces such as Baudelaire’s Les Fleurs du mal, costume designs for theatrical productions, perfume bottles created for Schiaparelli, and excerpts from her work as a writer. Through this diverse display, the retrospective does justice to the many facets of Fini’s prolific and multifaceted creativity.
Her eclectic personality is further brought to life through a constellation of quotes and documentary extracts projected along the walls. Fini defied categorization throughout her life – rejecting surrealism even as she was deeply in contact with the Surrealists’ circle during her years in Paris – and continuously challenging societal norms through both her work and lifestyle. Her refusal to be labeled, defined, or constrained is the thread that runs through the entire exhibition, making it a powerful homage to an artist who, above all, remained free.
“If we suddenly saw in the mirror, instead of the mask still badly put on or the haunting, sleepy, tired face, the inside of our head, of our throbbing, fragile, complicated, sticky, often deformed and unhealthy body, what would it be? Would we think that everyone is like this and like that? Would we have a disconcerning pity for everyone? A terrible discouragement? Anger?”
-Leonor Fini
My personal highlights :
- L’arme Blanche, 1936
- Whispering, 1976-78
- Decorative panels (Mushrooms – Feathers, Eggs and Butterflies – Underwater life), c. 1950
- Illustrations for Satiricon, 1979
- L’alcove (Autoportrait avec Nico Papatakis), 1941
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