Burri 100th anniversary celebrations span continents

Events in NYC and in many parts of Italy

(ANSA) - Rome, July 22 - As part of celebrations to mark the 100th anniversary of his birth, works by Italian modern-art great Alberto Burri' will return to the United States after a 38-year absence, while in Italy they will rub shoulders with those of the most famous 15th-century artists during Milan Expo 2015. The celebrations in his honor will last over a year, announced Fondazione Palazzo Albizzini Collezione Burri president Bruno Corà, who on Friday illustrated the events planned alongside Italian Culture Minister Dario Franceschini.

Alberto Burri, born in Città di Castello on March 12, 1915 (died in Nice, February 13, 1995), was one of the most eclectic geniuses of the 20th century and a master of Italian informalism. The fact that the anniversary celebrations were ''unanimously approved by Parliament ...strengthens the importance of the centenary even more," said Franceschini. "Anyone who has visited the most important museums in the world has seen what extraordinary international prestige this artist enjoys,'' he said.

Corà said that the calendar of events aims to ''raise awareness about Burri's works and the cultural context in which he conceived them, influencing not only 20th-century art but also successive generations''. The homage to Burri will begin on September 19 in San Sepolcro with the exhibition:'Rivisitazione: Burri incontra Piero della Francesca' ('Revisitation: Burri alongside Piero della Francesca'), the first exhibition ever in which his works will be placed next to those of 'maestri' from the upper Tiber Valley, where he was born. This will then be followed in March in the town of Morra with a seminar on the work of Luca Signorelli (who he was keenly interested in).

The Milan Expo 2015 will include the reconstruction of Teatro Continuo, a scenic platform Burri built in Parco Sempione in 1973 but which was demolished in 1989. The 'Grand Cretto' of the Sicilian town of Gibellina built on the ruins of the 1968 earthquake will be revived using the original design - the island's local government will complete the remaining 20,000 square meters. The highlight of the centenary will be the return of Burri's works to New York, guest of the Guggenheim Museum in a collection curated by Emily Braun. With over 100 works from both institutions and private individuals in the US and Europe, it will be the largest and most exhaustive exhibition of his works ever in a US contemporary art museum. After New York, the exhibition will move to Germany and then - in 2016 - to Città di Castello. An international conference with over 50 artists will also be held in the city to discuss the state of contemporary art. On the exact anniversary, on March 15, 2015, the Fondazione Burri will present its new general catalog of the artist's works. A new documentary film will tell of Burri as both an artist and a man starting from 1943, when during his detention in Hereford he left the medical profession to devote himself to painting. Corà said that more events would be added at the local level, ''with an event every day. We have asked the ministry to help us promote it at foreign cultural institutes''.