The Museo Arte Gallarate or MAGA is a museum of

modern Modern may refer to: History * Modern history ** Early Modern period ** Late Modern period *** 18th century *** 19th century *** 20th century ** Contemporary history * Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century Phil ...

and

contemporary art Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic com ...

Gallarate Gallarate (; Lombard: ''Galaraa'') is a city and ''comune'' of Alto Milanese of Lombardy and of Milan metropolitan area, northern Italy, in the Province of Varese. It has a population of some 54,000 people. It is the junction of railways to Va ...

, in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

Varese Varese ( , , or ; lmo, label= Varesino, Varés ; la, Baretium; archaic german: Väris) is a city and ''comune'' in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, north-west of Milan. The population of Varese in 2018 has reached 80,559. It is the c ...

Lombardy Lombardy ( it, Lombardia, Lombard language, Lombard: ''Lombardia'' or ''Lumbardia' '') is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in the northern-central part of the country and has a population of about 10 ...

in northern Italy. It was founded in 1966 as the Civica Galleria d'Arte Moderna di Gallarate to house works purchased from, and donated by, artists participating in the Premio Gallarate, a national art competition. It was renamed in 2010 and moved to a new building. The museum holds over 5000 works and the collection includes paintings, drawings, sculptures, graphic design works, photographs, and installations by artists including

Carlo Carrà Carlo Carrà (; February 11, 1881 – April 13, 1966) was an Italian painter and a leading figure of the Futurist movement that flourished in Italy during the beginning of the 20th century. In addition to his many paintings, he wrote a number ...

Loris Cecchini Loris Cecchini (born 1969) is an Italian contemporary artist. He works in various media, among them sculpture, installation and photography. In 2014 he won the annual Premio Arnaldo Pomodoro per la Scultura awarded by the Fondazione Arnaldo Pom ...

Gianni Colombo Gianni Colombo (Milan, 1933 – Melzo, 3 February 1993) was an Italian artist, member of the kinetic art movement. In the 1960s, Colombo attended Accademia di Brera in Milan, where he met Davide Boriani, Gabriele De Vecchi, Giovanni Ancesch ...

, Mario Bardi,

Lucio Fontana Lucio Fontana (; 19 February 1899 – 7 September 1968) was an Argentine-Italian painter, sculptor and theorist. He is mostly known as the founder of Spatialism. Early life Born in Rosario, to Italian immigrant parents, he was t ...

Ennio Morlotti Ennio Morlotti (21 September 1910 – 15 December 1992) was an Italian painter of the ''Corrente de Vita'' movement started in Milan as a counterpoint to nationalistic Futurism and the Novecento Italiano movements. His figures show an affinity to t ...

, Bruno Munari and . Contemporary art works are housed in the , in

Legnano Legnano (; or ''Lignàn'') is an Italian town and ''comune'' in the north-westernmost part of the Metropolitan City of Milan, Province of Milan, about from central Milan. With 60,259, it is the thirteenth-most populous township in Lombardy. Le ...

, some 15 km to the south-east of Gallarate.

History

The Civica Galleria d'Arte Moderna di Gallarate was founded in 1966 to house works acquired – either by donation or by purchase – from the first eight editions of the Premio Gallarate (in full, the Premio Nazionale Arti Visive Città di Gallarate), which had been founded sixteen years earlier, in 1950. The GAM became a nationally recognized museum at the beginning of the 1980s. On March 19, 2010, the grand opening of the current Museo MAGA began with an exhibition dedicated to

Amedeo Modigliani Amedeo Clemente Modigliani (, ; 12 July 1884 – 24 January 1920) was an Italian painter and sculptor who worked mainly in France. He is known for portraits and nudes in a modern style characterized by a surreal elongation of faces, necks, and ...

. The newly relocated museum was given the name Museo MAGA upon moving to its newly constructed premises. The modern makeover was completed to create a relationship with younger visitors and a more contemporary approach to the appreciation of the arts. In November 2015, the Museo MAGA expanded into Palazzo Leone da Perego in the center of Legnano, Lombardy, Italy.

The main building

The museum provides a space on the first floor for educational and artistic workshops. The museum is used as a study area by teenagers and adults. It offers wi-fi and a bar.

Palazzo Leone Da Perego

This structure was built in the second half of the thirteenth century by an Archiepiscopal Court. Two important buildings were built on the ruins of the castle of Cotta by the Archbishops of Milan: The Palace of Leone da Perego and The Palace of Ottone Visconti. The Archbishop's residences surrounded both buildings. In 2016, little remains of the original building due to radical restorations since 1898.

European Photograph Festival

MAGA hosted the European Photograph Festival in Pallazo Leone da Perego of Legnano, from 5 March to 10 April 2016. This exhibition was organized by Claudio Argentiero, and exhibited art pieces both from national and international photographers, including: Michael Akerman, Raffaele Montepaone, Giovanni Sesia, Giovanni Mereghetti and Cecile Decorniquet. This exhibition developed Palazzo Leone da Perego as a regional focal point for artistic photography.

CAM (Concrete Art Movement)

This project is dedicated to “The harmony of the form, Angelo Bozzola and the Concrete Art Movement (1948-1958)”. The exhibition is dedicated to the CAM because the MAGA museum has the historic archive and the important collection that belongs to the Foundation of Angelo Bozzola of Galliate. In the Palazzo Leone da Perego there are more than 75 art works by the artist Angelo Bozzola, and additional works by Bruno Munari, Gianni Monnet, Gillo Dorfles, Atanasio Soldati, and

Augusto Garau Augusto Orazio Vittorio Garau (Bolzano 1923 – Milan 2010) was an Italian artist, theorist of color, and professor. Garau took part in the Concrete art Movement (MAC). Education and early years Garau graduated at the Brera Academy in Milan i ...

References

{{Authority control Art museums and galleries in Lombardy Modern art museums in Italy 1966 establishments in Italy Museums established in 1966 Gallarate