Art Gallery of the Cassa di Risparmio Foundation of Tortona

“Divisionism” is a permanent exhibition inaugurated on May 26, 2012. The collection documents a fundamental moment in Italian artistic culture between the 19th and 20th centuries in its entire historical and social context through the dialogue between the original core of canvases by Giuseppe Pellizza da Volpedo and the subsequent targeted acquisitions of works by important artists who, on a national level, became interpreters of “separated painting.” 

The paintings trace a high-level path, from the chromatic experimentation of the Scapigliatura to the more mature application of the divided technique by socially engaged artists of the 1890s, to empirical approaches within Symbolism and the first attempts by the Futurists for whom Divisionism was the language of modernity. Unlike the collection catalog which follows a chronological order, the display also aims to highlight affinities between works from different geographical areas, seeking unusual, sometimes even surprising comparisons. Examples include the relationship between Serafino Macchiati and Giacomo Balla during a brief Parisian partnership in 1900, or between Guglielmo Amedeo Lori, Plinio Nomellini, and Benvenuto Benvenuti, united by their common Tuscan origin filtered through the development of their individual poetic expressions. Among the representatives of various divisionisms, one must not forget the Tortona native Angelo Barabino, to whom a deserved tribute was given with a dedicated exhibition room representing his most intense and creative production.