Now in its 29th edition, miart – the international modern and contemporary art fair organized by Fiera Milano – returns from April 4-6, reaffirming its position as a cornerstone of the European art scene.

Featuring 179 galleries from 31 countries across five continents and showcasing over a century of art under one roof, the fair continues to attract prestigious international galleries such as Sadie Coles HQ, MASSIMODECARLO, Victoria Miro, and Esther Schipper. This is no small feat, especially given the challenges facing the Italian art market following the failure to reduce VAT rates on art imports and transactions in the latest cultural policy measures.

Under the continued artistic direction of Nicola Ricciardi, the theme for miart 2025 is “Among Friends,” a tribute to the 2017 Robert Rauschenberg retrospective exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Ricciardi explains, “‘Among Friends’ celebrates the principles at the heart of Rauschenberg’s work, like openness to the world, interdisciplinarity, and a commitment to dialogue and collaboration. Miart embraces this same approach, positioning itself as a driving force behind an ideal contemporary arts festival for Milan. This vision takes shape through a series of initiatives that bring the concept of ‘friendship’ in the arts to life, intended as an equal, reciprocal, and genuine support among all players in the art ecosystem – fairs, institutions, galleries, artists, curators, and collectors.”

Nicola Ricciardi

It’s no surprise, then, that this year’s edition strengthens its collaborations with prestigious institutions, further reinforcing a model that has already proven successful in other settings, such as the Turin-based Artissima fair. The result is Ricciardi’s joint curatorship with Gianfranco Maraniello for a Rauschenberg exhibition at the Museo del Novecento, a flagship event of Art Week and a natural extension of miart’s overarching theme.

As Ricciardi notes, “The tendency to expand both temporally and spatially reflects a shift in how cultural events integrate into a broader ecosystem, where art is seen as an ongoing process. Miart and Fiera Milano are evolving in this direction, extending the art experience beyond the fair itself and engaging the public and institutions over a longer period. A prime example of this is the “Talks Among Friends” series, which launched in November 2024 and will continue beyond the fair’s duration. This project features five public discussions on the theme of collaboration, developed in partnership with key Milanese institutions: Fondazione Prada, Museo del Novecento, PAC – Padiglione d’Arte Contemporanea, Pirelli Hangar Bicocca, and Triennale Milano.”

One of miart’s defining features is the wide chronological scope of its works. “Divided into three sections – ‘Established,’ ‘Emergent,’ and ‘Portal’ – miart 2025 presents an exceptionally broad temporal range of artwork, from both early and late 20th-century masterpieces to pieces engaging with the most current cultural discourse, from exhibitions dedicated to auteur design to spotlights on the Italian master artists who have shaped Milan’s artistic landscape,” says Ricciardi.

“Positioned at the entrance of the fair to highlight the central role of a new generation of gallerists within the art ecosystem, “Emergent” section – curated by Attilia Fattori Franchini – offers an insight on experimental contemporary practices. With 25 galleries participating this year, including 19 international exhibitors and 14 newcomers, the section has been gaining gain momentum.

Nicola Ricciardi

In an art world that often struggles to support emerging talent, the prizes awarded during the fair play a crucial role in fostering artists and galleries, serving as strategic tools for discovering and amplifying new voices. Alongside long-established accolades such as the Fondazione Fiera Milano Acquisition Fund, the Herno Prize, the LCA Studio Legale Prize, and the more recent Massimo Giorgetti Prize, the introduction of the Orbital Cultura - Nexi Group Award, dedicated to photography, underscores a growing emphasis on new technologies and contemporary artistic research.

Finally, this year’s connection between miart and the city of Milan is further strengthened through its collaboration with the Municipality of Milan and Milano Art Week, the widespread event taking place from April 1st to 6^th, promoted by the Department of Culture and organized by the Total Art Association that brings together the city’s leading cultural institutions. Below is a curated selection of the most exciting and diverse events of Milan’s most vibrant art week, ranging from institutional exhibitions to design showcases that provide a sneak peek of Design Week, as well as experimental and cutting-edge projects.

Until June 8th, the Padiglione d’Arte Contemporanea (PAC) in Milan presents “Body of Evidence,” an extensive solo exhibition by Shirin Neshat (1957, Qazvin), winner of the Golden Lion at the 1999 Venice Biennale and the Silver Lion for Best Director at the 2009 Venice Film Festival. Curated by Diego Sileo and Beatrice Benedetti, this marks the most comprehensive exhibition of the Iranian artist and director’s work in Italy to date, work known for poetically exploring the connections between identity, gender, and politics.

Her series Women of Allah (1993-1997) remains one of her most recognizable works. This series is made up of photographs characterized by the signature style of Persian calligraphy, conveying poetic and political messages, layered over portraits of veiled women – her deep engagement with themes of female identity and post-revolutionary Iranian society perfectly conveyed through photographs.

With nearly 200 works on display, “Body of Evidence” is an unmissable exhibition, reaffirming PAC’s bold and thought-provoking vision and as an institution fostering artistic voices within Milan’s cultural landscape.

American poet and artist John Giorno is known for his avant-garde approach to poetry, transforming it into an immersive and accessible “pop” experience. A pioneering figure in media aesthetics, his revolutionary Dial-A-Poem project (1968) allowed listeners to hear recorded poetry written by a number of authors by dialing a phone number. This project enabled Giorno to respond to a different kind of poetic consumption – as he once stated, “A lot of poetry is meant to be heard, not just read.”

On view until April 13th, 2025 – matching with the closing day of Design Week – Triennale Milano presents “John Giorno: a Labor of LOVE,” curated by miart director Nicola Ricciardi with Eleonora Molignani and with the support of MSGM, featuring an installation by studio EX and designed to give shape to the theme of the fair. This exhibition offers a rare opportunity to delve into the work of an artist whose influence spans six decades, from the Beat Generation and AIDS activism to Robert Rauschenberg’s Experiments in Art and Technology and Andy Warhol, including a role in Warhol’s experimental film Sleep (1963).

For its 2025 edition, Fondazione ICA presents a tailored site-specific exhibition project – spurred from a dialogue between Piero Gandini and Alberto Salvadori – dedicated to an important international designer whose work engages with the languages of contemporary art. This year’s protagonist is Jasper Morrison (1959, London), whose exhibition “The Lightness of Things” – open until July 11th, 2025 – delves into the meaning and essence of design. “I actually think beauty is overrated,” Morrison provocatively states. How does this perspective translate into exhibition form?

The project includes a meticulously arranged installation of 12 suspended chairs and 12 wall-mounted photographic compositions, accompanied by Six Agents Sound the Morrison Canon, a minimalist sound installation by composer Anthony Moore, featuring a composition of non-human voices reading excerpts from texts written by Jasper Morrison. Also noteworthy on a smaller scale is ROAD RUNNER, a solo exhibition by Cemile Sahin, curated by Chiara Nuzzi, which tackles pressing policy issues, urging greater awareness and, preferably, proactive engagement.

Until April 13th, Fondazione Elpis in the Porta Romana district hosts “YOU ARE HERE. Central Asia.” Taking inspiration from the typical expression used to pinpoint the viewer’s location, this group exhibition offers a rare opportunity to explore cultural contexts that remain largely underrepresented by providing an in-depth look at contemporary artistic production from four Central Asian countries: Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Curated by Aida Sulova and Dilda Ramazan, the exhibition brings together paintings, sculptures, videos, photographs, and installations by 27 artists, reflecting on themes of identity, belonging, self-identification, and self-determination.

As part of Milan Art Week, artist Jazgul Madazimova, a member of DAVRA collective, presents The Scent of Your Memory, a performance conceived specifically for the exhibition. The piece examines gender inequality and broader social issues related to the concepts of boundaries, absence, and nostalgia, drawing from the story of Madazimova’s mother’s migration forced by Kyrgyzstan’s economic struggle following its independence in the early 1990s. The piece will unfold in two parts – Wednesday, April 2nd, and Wednesday, April 9th. Admission is free, subject to availability.

Chez Iva, a project that transforms the home-studio of artist Iva Lulashi into a nighttime exhibition space, collaborates with CARLA MAI for this year’s Art Week event. CARLA MAI is a newly launched production and design project for site-specific performances, which – as its founder describes it – “seeks to create a dreamlike space” within an atmosphere reminiscent of “shimmering powder,” a “performative non-place.”CARLA MAI, in collaboration with Matteo Bozzi, created a metallic set, transforming the spaces of the house into an astral stage. 

Here, on the night of April 5th starting at 11:30 p.m., the evening unfolds in a surreal blend of Fellini-esque imagery, circus aesthetics, and nightlife culture, featuring a lineup of interdisciplinary performers. Among them are Apex Anima and FRZNTE – the former a musician, the latter a pole dancer boasting collaborations with Berlinale and the Venice Biennale – along with Amber Fasquelle and River Roux, and a soundscape composed by Ozgur Kaya; and lastly, NiCKY is presenting an act navigates the space between pathos and irony, crafting an atmosphere that is at once tragic and comedic. By reimagining the relationship between body, space, and sound, this event seeks to embody a utopian vision – one that dissolves the moment it takes shape.

Opening image: © FRZNTE