"Munch and the expressionist revolution" arrives in Mestre, showcasing masterpieces and contemporary art

From October 29th to March 1st, 2026, the Candiani Cultural Center in Mestre hosts a remarkable exhibition focusing on Edvard Munch and his influence on the history of 20th-century art. Curated by Elisabetta Barisoni, the exhibition presents a journey through the emotions and visual languages ​​that accompanied the Expressionist revolution, exploring the works of the celebrated Norwegian painter and his contemporaries, all the way to the artists of today.

Munch was an artist who knew how to translate the profound anxieties of his time into unstable marks, vibrant colors, and sharp lines. Hailing from distant Norway, the creator of masterpieces such as "Moonlight" and "Two Old Men" intensely experienced the contradictions of the era, leaving an indelible mark on both the artists of his generation and those active in the second half of the 20th century. The exhibition illustrates how Munch's language paved the way for a new expressive sensibility, radically changing European and Western visual culture.

The museum's renovated rooms host a close-up comparison of Munch's graphic works with those of other artists who shaped the 20th century. They come partly from the collections of the Galleria Internazionale d'Arte Moderna di Ca' Pesaro, which houses examples of graphic art executed in drypoint, aquatint, etching, and lithography. Alongside Munch's creations, visitors discover the grotesque masks of James Ensor and the cutting engravings of Max Beckmann, an artist represented with 29 works thanks to a significant donation in 2022. Brutality and expressive force also emerge in the works of Ugo Valeri, Otto Dix, Christian Rohlfs, and Alberto Martini, capable of delving into the human soul through material and the bold deformation of figures.

The exhibition explores the legacy of Munch's "Expressionist Scream," reinterpreting it in the experiments of Renato Guttuso, the radical actions of Marina Abramovic, and Shirin Neshat's reflections on the relationship between identity and denunciation. The skulls of Mike Nelson and Brad Kalhamer, recently donated by Gemma De Angelis Testa to the Ca' Pesaro Gallery, flow through the new spaces, demonstrating how the power of Expressionism still resonates in contemporary art. The artistic journey traced by the exhibition highlights the continuity and relevance of Munch's research, whose legacy lives on in the works of the protagonists of the latest generations, in global provocations and anxieties.

The project draws on the graphic art collections of Ca' Pesaro, where the comparison between Munch and Ensor, Beckmann, Dix, and Martini draws a critical thread through the representation of anxiety, fear, and the dark side of existence. The exhibition not only restores Munch's emotional power but also develops it within the context of a cosmopolitan Venice, a crossroads of donations, exchanges, and new experiments spanning different centuries and distant personal histories. "Two Old Men" reemerges as a milestone alongside his early engravings, demonstrating a vision that astonishes observers and artists, engaging the public in a close dialogue between past, present, and future.

The Candiani Center confirms its position as a space for investigation and reflection on the great artistic figures of the 20th century, having hosted exhibitions dedicated to Kandinsky, Matisse, and the avant-garde. The encounter with Munch, an artist who transformed suffering and solitude into a universal poetics, represents a crucial moment for understanding the revolutionary scope of Expressionism. The intertwining of Munch's works with those of Ensor, Beckmann, Dix, Martini, Guttuso, Abramovic, Neshat, and Nelson brings to the stage a multidisciplinary narrative of human anxieties, relaunching Mestre as a hub for contemporary culture.

The proposed journey spans eras and languages, from encounters with the historical avant-gardes to dialogue with the most radical voices of modernity. Graphic works, paintings, performances, and installations emerge as vital testimonies to Munch's legacy, reflecting on the persistence of trauma in Western visual culture. The choice of Mestre as a venue for discussion and exploration allows for a lively and direct exploration of the power of the Expressionist style, questioning the audience about the reasons for its relevance and enduring appeal.