ARTE CONTEMPORANEA 2

acquisitions and donations
June – July – August 1992
by Gottardo Ortelli

The millenary artistic history of Viggiù, rich in high-value events, which is represented in the Butti Museum by only a tiny portion of what it has left as a legacy to the world, wishes to continue to be involved and active in the affairs of art, to live again in the present and to be the creator of new adventures.

The establishment of this first nucleus of the Contemporary Art Collection was made possible by the generosity of the artists, friends and supporters of the Museum, who donated their works as a tangible sign of support for the cultural directions pursued thus far.
The curriculum of exhibitions that the Museum has organized (see the last page) is of the highest standard; we feel confident in stating this without false modesty and with some pride even in comparison with larger museums.

We have held, even in the field of contemporary art, high-level exhibitions, some of them memorable (we recall the one on Fausto Melotti in September ’81) dedicated to artists of unquestionable quality and stature, but we have also been able to promptly recognize the emergence of figures who later gained wider recognition. Moreover, we have taken an interest in artists who, though off-center from the spotlight, produced works of great significance.
Among the exhibited works, drawings, sketches, and works on paper prevail: they all reflect the most instinctive and secret moment of the artist’s language, and for this reason, they are also the most revealing.
Quoting Melotti: “to every artist, drawings are dear because each time they bring back that obscure point of the genesis of the work of art…”.

Thus, drawing holds a unique documentary value, especially when, even at the exhibition level, it stands alongside the so-called major work.
Over time, we would like to build this collection around the two poles of genesis and work.