On June 17, 2026, Museum of Art Pudong (MAP) officially presents major international exhibition, Giorgio Morandi. Solo in collaboration with Museo Morandi, Bologna, Italy. As MAP celebrates its fifth anniversary, the museum unveils the largest exhibition of Morandi's works to date in this century. Guided by a richly emotional narrative and a finely attuned viewing experience, the exhibition marks another significant chapter in MAP's program on the global art stage.

Giorgio Morandi (1890–1964), born in Bologna, Italy, is one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. With a systematic approach to research, he opened up a profound artistic world through the ordinary objects of everyday life. The exhibition brings together more than 200 exhibits from over 30 institutions and collections worldwide, including more than 140 original pieces by Morandi in various mediums, including: oil painting, etching, watercolor and drawing. More than 120 works are being shown in China for the first time. From the still life widely associated with Morandi's iconic color palette to rarely exhibited portraits, from experimental paintings across different phases of his career to universally acclaimed masterpieces, the exhibition presents the artist's creative life from multiple perspectives and breaks the simplistic impression of Morandi as merely a "painter of bottles and jars." It also features more than 50 precious original photographs of Morandi's studio by the renowned documentary photographer Gianni Berengo Gardin, in addition to a group of installations by acclaimed contemporary artist Tacita Dean that interpret and respond to Morandi's gaze, creating an artistic dialogue across time and space.

For the exhibition, MAP's first and second floor galleries are transformed into two distinct environments through a quiet, intimate and emotionally-charged design, weaving together a dual narrative. One thread offers a comprehensive view of Morandi's creative career,  comprising of more than 30 sub-sections carefully tracing the full trajectory of his practice over half a century. The other reconstructs scenes from his everyday life through documents, photographs and personal artifacts, composing a multidimensional image of the artist. As these two narratives unfold in parallel, they reveal Morandi's restrained and pure inner solo, while encouraging visitors to bring their own memories and perception of time into the act of looking, as well as to experience the subtle connection between the broader world and the microcosm of daily life.

The exhibition is produced by the Shanghai Lujiazui East Bund Culture Development Co., Ltd.; organised by the Museum of Art Pudong and Museo Morandi; curated by Lorenzo Balbi, Director of the Museo Morandi, and Francesco D'Arelli, Director of the Italian Cultural Institute in Shanghai; designed by Aldo Cibic Workshop; supported and promoted by the Consulate General of Italy in Shanghai, the Italian Cultural Institute in Shanghai and the City of Bologna. 

A Cultural Resonance Beyond Art History: Returning to the Origins of the Legendary Morandi Colors

For the general public, Morandi's name has long exceeded the context of modern art history and has become synonymous with a widely recognized color system. At a time when Modernism continually pursued intense color, radical form and avant-garde manifestos, Morandi established a highly self-consistent, instantly recognizable pictorial plane through limited subjects, muted color and a lifetime of formal experimentation. His method resists classification within any single movement, and his commitment gave his work an extraordinary sense of internal consistency.

Morandi colors do not refer to any fixed color, but to a chromatic system formed by specific tones, light, spatial relations and pictorial aura. From Haute couture and interior design to contemporary lifestyle, the low-saturation, soft and enduring visual effects represented by Morandi colors has continued to shape global aesthetics for more than half a century.

By displaying a variety of Morandi's original pieces, the exhibition brings visitors back to the site where Morandi colors took shape, allowing them to experience directly the exquisite chromatic composition of these works and to further understand Morandi's aesthetics that begin with Morandi colors but extend far beyond.

Solo: More Than 30 Sections Trace Morandi's Complete Artistic Journey

Solo is both the title of the exhibition and the central theme running through its narrative. It anchors Morandi as the central protagonist, while drawing on the musical reference of the term: the peak moment of maximum concentration in which a single voice carries the whole scene. In a similar spirit, Morandi's art asserts itself through subtraction, rigor, and silent intensity, guiding viewers into a quiet and focused state of observation, offering a visual solo.

As the most systematic and complete presentation of Morandi's art globally in this century so far, Giorgio Morandi. Solo employs more than 30 sub-sections to trace how his artistic language refined and matured through different stages of exploration. The exhibition begins with his early absorption of and response to Cézanne, Cubism, Futurism and Metaphysical painting, then transitions towards the increasingly distinct series of still life and landscape that emerged after the 1920s; from the wartime shell paintings charged with particular historical significance, to the reappearance of light, flowers and still life in the postwar period; and onward to landscapes and watercolors that became increasingly simplified, approaching the threshold of abstraction. By interweaving the artist's life experience with the evolution of his practice, the exhibition reveals how Morandi opened up an almost infinite field of variation within a deliberately limited range of subjects.

Juxtaposition of Acclaimed Masterpieces and Rare Treasures

The exhibition showcases many representative works by Morandi spanning several decades, namely still life, flowers and landscapes. Flowers and still life are among Morandi's most celebrated bodies of work, demonstrating his long study of everyday objects through shifts in viewpoint, tonal nuance and compositional order. His landscapes further expand this method, extending it to the courtyard of his residence on Via Fondazza in Bologna and the mountain scenery of Grizzana.

In the still-life themed gallery, a 1956 oil painting stands as an iconic piece of this series. Its soft, warm tones and stable, harmonious composition constitute Morandi's signature language, showing his extremely sophisticated technique and complete command of the picture plane. This period is also generally regarded as the peak of his creative career. Another oil painting, Landscape from 1928, depicts an isolated building on the hills of Grizzana. Located just outside Bologna, Grizzana is where Morandi spent his summers. He created several groups of works around this subject, among which this painting is particularly precious. These landscapes later helped Morandi win a series of international awards. In 1985, in recognition of the rich artistic and cultural legacy left by the artist, the town was officially renamed Grizzana Morandi.

Family and Friends: Stepping into Morandi's Private World

Through Morandi's paintings, the exhibition also offers glimpses into his private life. Morandi never married, and had hardly ever left his hometown Bologna, spending his entire life living with his three sisters. Despite his reclusiveness, he was not truly isolated from the world. He had a small and intimate circle of friends, whom he often gifted with his own hand-made artificial flowers; his signature flower series also emerged from this context. The oil painting Flowers, created in 1949, is especially important. In the process of completing it, Morandi found the direction that would shape his later treatment of the subject.

Another work, Shells, painted in 1943, also reveals Morandi's family life and friendship. During the war, Morandi created 18 paintings on the theme of shells. The twisted and unsettling forms of this subject reflect the artist's solitary and melancholic inner state. Yet only in this work are the shells placed alongside a sugar bowl, an object associated with sweetness and memory, lending the painting a note of warmth. The work was first collected by one of Morandi's closest friends and, after changing hands over the years, was donated by the artist's sister to a supporter of the Morandi family, which led to it signifying the continuity of Morandi's art, spirit and friendships.

Several rare works in the exhibition further reveal the diversity of Morandi's artistic practice, including a self-portrait and a portrait of his younger sister. The former, now held by the Uffizi Galleries in Italy, was painted in 1924, early in the artist's career. It is one of the key highlights at the beginning of the exhibition. Portraits are rare within Morandi's oeuvre, and self-portraits are even more exceptional. Through this work, visitors can glimpse into and make inference about the man beneath the mysterious aura of the "monastic painter." Furthermore, the portrait of his sister completed in 1921, has never been publicly exhibited before. This exhibition marks the work's first-ever public appearance.

Entering Morandi's Workspace Through Film, Objects and Archives

Moving beyond original artworks, the exhibition utilizes studio images, personal objects and archival documents to reconstruct the choices that defined Morandi's art and life.

Morandi executed the vast majority of his works in his two studios in Bologna and Grizzana. For him, the studio was not merely a domestic space but the core arena where he observed the world, reordered reality, and formulated his pictorial language. Showcasing more than 50 precious historical photographs of his studio, the exhibition transports visitors into the artist's living and working spaces, providing insight into how Morandi forged his unique visual expression through a daily routine of gazing, arranging, and meditating.

One of the most location-specific highlights of the exhibition is the presentation of original props from Morandi's studio. The vases, artificial flowers, tin cans and other everyday objects that repeatedly appeared on his canvases are displayed alongside paintings with the same subject matters. In particular, the oil painting Still Life from 1952, also featured as the exhibition's key visual, is juxtaposed with the original objects Morandi once used as references, along with another drawing of the same composition. As "real object" meets "painted subject" in one space, viewers intuitively perceive that Morandi's work was never a simple mimicry of reality, but a singular reconstruction of form, light, and time.

In the etchings gallery, the star press once used by Morandi takes center stage, marking its first-ever departure from Bologna for public display since 1993. As a vital material evidence to Morandi's etching practice, it not only carries historical value but also invites visitors to discover an often-overlooked facet of the master: not only was Morandi a virtuoso of still life, but also one of the most important etchers in 20th-century Europe. Morandi taught engraving techniques for many years at the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna. Through precise hatching, subtle gradations of gray and carefully structured chiaroscuro, his etchings established a highly exacting aesthetic order between black and white. This crucial historical object, shown together with more than a dozen selected etchings, reveals Morandi's artistic practice as a printmaker.

In addition, the exhibition presents Morandi's private book collection, handwritten letters and other archival materials, offering a well-rounded and nuanced portrait of the artist. While often characterized as a "hermit" painter, Morandi remained deeply engaged with a broader intellectual world, including history, literature, and Eastern philosophy.

Morandi through Contemporary Lenses: Extending Time, Objects, and Gaze

Alongside the reconstruction of Morandi's creative environment, the exhibition specially features two films by the renowned contemporary artist Tacita Dean, highlighting Morandi's enduring influence on contemporary art.

In Still Life (2009), Dean focuses her lens on the studio of the artist, filming the pencil tracings on the sheets of paper where Morandi marked the position of the objects he painted; these lines meticulously record the artist's lifetime process of arranging, moving, and calibrating forms. Meanwhile, Day for Night (2009) shifts the focus to Morandi's studio objects; restricted from touching or moving these historical items, Dean filmed them in random groupings that stand in sharp contrast to the rigorous, painstakingly mathematical compositions of Morandi's paintings. Through long exposures and a concentrated gaze, both films allow those objects enveloped in dust, light, and memory to reveal the stories behind them.

An Enduring Master: Re-reading Morandi Today

In an age characterized by overly saturated imagery and relentless acceleration of sensory experiences, Morandi's paintings offer an antidote to heavy visual stimulation, establishing a mechanism for "slow looking" through minimal subjects, low-saturation tones, and prolonged observation. The restraint, order, and internal balance within his works strike a fresh chord with contemporary audiences seeking stability, focus, and internal reflection. This exhibition is not merely a retrospective of the modern master, but a profound dialogue on perception, the passage of time, and the rhythm of life.

To further ground Morandi's art in its urban context, the exhibition also features recently filmed documentary footage that traces the artist's footsteps across Bologna through a subjective lens. Paired with original audio from an interview with Morandi, the video allows visitors to forge a more direct sensory connection among moving images, sound, and the original works. Bologna served as the core coordinate and spiritual anchor for Morandi's life and practice; as visitors follow the camera through the corners of the city within the gallery space, the gallery itself transforms into a site of encounter across different space and time.

Celebrating MAP's Fifth-Anniversary with Morandi

In 2026, Museum of Art Pudong reaches an important milestone: the fifth anniversary since its inauguration. Since its official opening in July 2021, MAP has positioned international cultural exchange at the heart of its mission alongside domestic art curation. Driven by its core functions including holding world-class exhibitions, promoting art education, and developing cultural merchandise, the museum has established itself as a distinguished cultural landmark in Shanghai and a vital platform for global artistic dialogue. Over the past five years, MAP has partnered with-renowned international institutions, such as Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli, Galleria Borghese (Rome), Museo Nacional del Prado, Tate, Musée d'Orsay, Musée du Louvre, and Musée national Picasso-Paris, continually bringing to Shanghai high-caliber programs with scholarly depth and public impact, thereby building an important bridge between global artistic classics and contemporary urban cultural life.

Officially opening prior to MAP's fifth anniversary, Giorgio Morandi. Solo advances the museum's long-standing practice of bringing world-class artistic resources to Shanghai and deepening international museum partnerships, while further weaving art into the fabric of urban public life. Combining an unparalleled lineup of works, a systematic scholarly narrative, and an immersive viewing experience, the exhibition presents a panoramic account of the creative trajectory of the 20th-century Italian master.

To complement the exhibition, MAP will roll out a series of public programs, workshops, family-oriented initiatives, cultural merchandise, and special anniversary events, further extending the exhibition's social reach and aesthetic values into everyday life.