“Attesa” is a word rich in meaning and nuance, deeply rooted in the gallery’s history. Lucio Fontana used it to refer to the slashes in his famous monochrome canvases: a single opening corresponds to “attesa,” while multiple openings transform the title into “attese.” The word goes beyond the idea of mere passive waiting and looks to the future as anticipation or hope.

Fontana’s gesture heralds a new modernity: a different way of conceiving the artwork and a radically new role for art in society. This is the starting point for the exhibition curated by Ilaria Bignotti for Tornabuoni Art Paris, which uses Fontana as a key to reinterpret the collection. The exhibition brings together different artists based on their “temporalities”: the slowness of Alighiero Boetti and Claudio Parmiggiani, Fontana’s gesture in contrast to Alberto Burri’s, the speed of Giacomo Balla against the immobility of Giorgio de Chirico. The exhibition thus reflects on how time and history intertwine in art, echoing Georges Didi-Huberman: before every image, we are always before time.

The exhibition will be on view from April 1, 2026, to June 7, 2026, at the Tornabuoni Art gallery in Paris.

Ilaria Bignotti born in Brescia in January 1979, holds a Ph.D. in Art Theory and History and serves as a curatorial director for artist archives, including the Paolo Scheggi Archive Association and the Fabrizio Plessi Studio. She has been appointed by the City of Brescia to provide support for artistic direction and the organization of contemporary art projects and events (2024–2026). A cultural planner and independent curator, she has been a member of the Scientific Committee of the MoRE Museum since 2011 and contributes to the “Culture and Leisure” section of the “Corriere della Sera – Brescia.” Since 2008, she has been a contract professor at the SantaGiulia Academy of Fine Arts in Brescia. She is also a registered expert with the Chamber of Commerce and a consultant for the Court of Brescia on 20th-century art.