From July 15 to September 14, 2025, the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea presents the exhibition “2025 East and West: International Dialogue Exhibition – From Shanghai to Rome”, curated by Gabriele Simongini and Zhang Xiaoling. The exhibition is organized by the Ministry of Culture, the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, the Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts, and the Shanghai Artists Association, and produced by Zhong Art International. It is held under the patronage of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Italy, the Academy of Fine Arts of Florence, the Academy of Fine Arts of Rome, and RUFA – Rome University of Fine Arts, with support from Shanghai University.
Featuring over seventy works by more than forty artists, the exhibition centers on the encounter between artists from Shanghai and the historical collection of the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea. It opens a dialogue with works by prominent 20th-century Italian artists who are particularly admired and studied in China and considered true masters in the East. These include Giacomo Balla, Umberto Boccioni, Amedeo Modigliani, Carlo Carrà, Giorgio de Chirico, Gino Severini, Marino Marini, Giorgio Morandi, Alberto Burri, Lucio Fontana, Jannis Kounellis, and Mario Schifano—offering a sweeping overview of a century marked by diverse artistic visions, from Futurism to post-metaphysical suspension, from Art Informel to the Scuola di Piazza del Popolo and Arte Povera. Their works are presented alongside those by internationally renowned or emerging contemporary artists—including Maurizio Cattelan, Rudolf Stingel, Daniela De Lorenzo, Alessandro Piangiamore, Emanuele Becheri, and Davide Rivalta—who create a multidimensional dialogue.
“This exhibition is a valuable opportunity to discover the art of a major country such as China—distant yet central on the international stage—and to compare it with contemporary Italian creative expressions. Art evolves through exchange, and for this reason, a public museum must encourage and promote dialogue with diverse cultures,” says Renata Cristina Mazzantini, Director of the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea.
According to Zeng Chenggang, President of the Shanghai Artists Association and President of the Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts, “East and West” is an exhibition driven by the desire to transcend geographical and cultural boundaries, exploring how contemporary art can respond to the urgencies of our time. In a global context marked by deep transformation, China and Italy share the challenge of cultural renewal and identity. This project emerges from that shared foundation, offering a platform for genuine dialogue through the universal language of art.
Contemporary Chinese art is a constantly evolving cultural phenomenon, deeply rooted in its millennia-old tradition while projecting itself toward the future. Against the symbolic backdrop of the 700th anniversary of Marco Polo’s death and the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Italy and China, the exhibition offers a unique opportunity to explore “the works of artists linked to Shanghai [which] invite us to traverse a world in motion, poised between two thresholds. One is tradition; the other is a projection into the future—mirroring a country that has undergone remarkable economic and technological growth. In this terrain, steeped in what we might call a constantly transforming tradition, artists search for a face to represent an ever more elusive present. Many of the works on view demonstrate how ancient techniques—such as ink painting—are honored with reverence while being pushed beyond traditional boundaries to confront today’s challenges, both formally and thematically, opening new visionary paths.” (G. Simongini)
The works on display reveal a pairing of technical mastery and striking visual impact, rich in form and content. Multiple references to Chinese cultural traditions are present—such as “The Sparrow Flies Toward the Sun” by Jiao Xiaojian; “Dunhuang Dream – Guanyin with a Thousand Hands” by Tang Yongli; “Reading Epigraphs in Pingshan” by Wang Tiande; “Dragon – Origin” by Xia Cun; and the sculptural series “Heroes of Liangshan” by Zeng Chenggang, referencing the legendary Water Margin heroes who gathered on Mount Liangshan to oppose corruption and injustice.
Contemporary Chinese urban imagery is also featured—“Modern Impression” by Gao Chuan; “Sea View Series – From Cloudy to Sunny” by Mao Donghua—as well as vibrant, sign-based abstraction, such as “Ten Signs 2019 – 14” by Ding Yi, “166202310211615” by Ding She, “Listening to the Voice of the Earth 1” by Li Lei, “Traces of Life” by Wei Ping, “Algorithm. Computational Capacity” by Song Gang, and “Ripple” by Zhang Ruyi. A contemplative connection with nature is evident in works such as “Swaying No.35” by Bai Ying, “Little Flying Rainbow – 1” by Ding Beili, “Primordial Image No.3” by Jin Qing, “Among Mountains and Waters” by Ni Wei, “Seeking the Way Through Mountains and Streams” by Wang Tiande, “In the Dense Foliage No.3” by Xiao Min, and “Lotus – Water” by Zeng Chenggang.
The human figure is explored through visionary and introspective homage to the photographer of “difference” Diane Arbus (Jiang Jianzhong), the restless faces in sculptures by Li Zhimin, anthropomorphic-mechanical hybrids by Qiu Jia, the powerful realism of Wei Kun’s “Great Masters of the Century”, the generational pictorial reportage by Xin Dongwang, and the enigmatic reflective steel knight in “Solitary Journey” by Zhai Qingxi.
As emphasized by the Chinese curatorial team, “‘East and West’ is not merely a symbol of openness and mutual enrichment, but also a continuous reflection on modernity, identity construction, and the cultural complexity of the globalized world. In an age of rapid globalization and cultural standardization, the main curatorial challenge is to establish a deep and equitable intercultural dialogue filled with creative tension, while preserving each individual’s cultural roots and expressive language. The title of the exhibition embodies this reflection, transcending traditional geographic and cultural boundaries by exploring, through cultural subjectivity and the interactive dimension of visual language, the spiritual scope and social meaning of contemporary art on a global scale.”
The exhibition unfolds in three progressive thematic sections: “Reflections of Space-Time,” “Expansion of Thought,” and “Generation of the Imaginary.” It presents multiple historical perspectives, media transformations, and contemporary perceptions, constructing a field of dialogue that traverses culture, history, and interior experience.
The first section, “Reflections of Space-Time,” explores how Chinese and Italian artists, from the 20th century to today, have addressed processes of modernization, navigating cultural identity reconstruction and artistic language renewal—between the spiritual continuity of tradition and contemporary visual ruptures. “Expansion of Thought” focuses on the transformation of materials, media, and conceptual languages. Through sculpture, installation, and constructive painting, artists turn materiality into metaphor—mapping the structure of thought and reality, and shaping a narrative of the present that is both sensitive and rational. Finally, “Generation of the Imaginary” roots the artworks in local experience, urban memory, and personal storytelling—generating social landscapes and psychological scenarios that interweave abstraction and figuration.
Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea
The GNAMC is a museum of national importance and a first-level directorate of the Italian Ministry of Culture, with organizational, financial, and accounting autonomy. Established in 1883 with the ambitious goal of collecting the finest examples of contemporary art, the GNAMC is located near Villa Borghese in the prestigious building designed by architect Cesare Bazzani in 1911. It houses around 20,000 works of art, including paintings, drawings, sculptures, installations, design objects, films, and photographs.
Thanks to focused acquisition policies and generous donations, it holds the world’s most important collection of Italian works from the past two centuries, alongside masterpieces by international artists such as Klimt, Van Gogh, Warhol, and Twombly. It documents major international artistic movements from Neoclassicism to Romanticism, Impressionism to Divisionism, the Avant-Gardes to Pop Art, Arte Povera to Transavantgarde, Minimalism to Informal Art—and continues to enrich its collection with 21st-century works.
Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts
Originally founded in 1912 as the Shanghai School of Fine Arts and reestablished in 1959, the Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts embodies the spirit of modern Chinese art, rooted in the influential “Haipai” (Shanghai School) painting tradition. Today, under the leadership of its current president Zeng Chenggang—also President of the Chinese Sculpture Society—the Academy offers 4 first-level doctoral programs, 2 post-doctoral programs, 17 undergraduate courses, and 8 teaching departments, along with a national demonstration center for experimental teaching. With two active campuses and a new “Baowu” main campus under construction, the Academy is committed to an educational vision built on the values: “For the people, for art, for life, for the city”—paving the way to becoming a world-class institution.
Curated by Gabriele Simongini and Zhang Xiaoling
July 15 – September 14, 2025
Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea Rome, Viale delle Belle Arti, 131
T +39 06 32298221
gnamc.cultura.gov.it
