Modern and Contemporary Art: An Auction Featuring 20th-Century Masters and Contemporary Stars

On December 2, 2025, the much-awaited Modern and Contemporary Art auction returns, offering a unique opportunity to explore the evolution of artistic language from the 20th to the 21st century. The auction catalog presents a rich and diverse panorama, spanning from historical avant-gardes to the latest artistic experiments, with works by renowned masters such as Giorgio de Chirico, Alberto Martini, Tino Stefanoni, Enrico Castellani, Piero Dorazio, and Piero Manzoni, alongside prints by Pablo Picasso.

Among the most notable lots are masterpieces of exceptional quality. Stranded Ship on a Coast with Ruins by Arturo Nathan, painted in 1929, captivates with the artist’s visionary style, while Apocalypse by Mario Sironi, created around 1961, demonstrates the dramatic and symbolic power of the artist in his full maturity.

Antonio Donghi is represented with lyrical and suspended works such as Roman Landscape (1938) and Musical Instruments (1942), while a rare Venetian view from the early 1960s by Giorgio de Chirico, Venice – Doge’s Palace, perfectly blends classical forms with metaphysical atmosphere.

The auction continues with important post-war and contemporary works. Among them, Giorgio Morandi’s Still Life (1952), one of the top lots of the sale, exemplifies his poetic approach of silence and restraint.

Piero Manzoni’s Tenderly (circa 1957) reflects his experimental phase before the Achromes.

The contemporary section also features monumental works such as Igor Mitoraj’s sculpture Luci di Nara (2014), Matteo Pugliese’s bronze Dragonfly (2019), and Julian Schnabel’s large-scale, material-rich composition Carlina (1998).

A special segment of the auction, lots 97–131, comes from the collection of the San Patrignano Foundation, which is presenting for the first time a selection of contemporary works for charitable purposes. The proceeds will support energy efficiency projects at the facility, historically active in drug rehabilitation.

The lots include a large sculpture by Igor Mitoraj, a pictorial installation by Pino Pinelli, an imposing canvas by Julian Schnabel, and works by contemporary Italian artists such as Bertozzi & Casoni, Loris Cecchini, and Matteo Pugliese, all generously donated by artists, collectors, and gallerists.

This sale thus represents not only a significant window onto 20th-century and contemporary art but also an opportunity to support meaningful social projects, combining aesthetic experience with civic engagement in a single auction event.