SAN FRANCESCO – Our Contemporary: Between Art and Spirituality. An Artistic Dialogue on Saint Francis and the 800th Anniversary of His Death, Rooted in Local Identity

SAN FRANCESCO – Nostro contemporaneo tra Arte e Spiritualità is the new exhibition by Fondazione Perugia at Palazzo Baldeschi, running from 18 April to 1 November 2026. The show presents an original curatorial proposal that brings contemporary art, spirituality, and local identity into dialogue, inviting visitors to explore—and pay tribute to—the figure of Saint Francis of Assisi, whose 800th anniversary of death falls in 2026.

The exhibition has received prestigious patronage from the Ministry of Culture, the National Committee for the Celebration of the Eighth Centenary of the Death of Saint Francis of Assisi, the Region of Umbria, and the City of Perugia. Conceived through the collaboration between Fondazione Perugia and the Galleria Nazionale dell’Umbria, it is curated by Costantino D’Orazio, the Director of the Galleria Nazionale, who also serves as curator of the project. The aim is to build a dialogue between the territory’s historical heritage and the languages of the present.

Saint Francis of Assisi—who died in 1226 and was canonized in 1228—continues to speak powerfully to the modern world. Across the centuries, he has become an archetype of values that remain strikingly current today: a harmonious relationship with nature, the rejection of wealth for its own sake, attention to the least fortunate, a dialogue among all living creatures, and the search for an authentic dimension of existence.

Organized by Fondazione Perugia, the exhibition draws on major loans from significant institutions, including MAXXI, the General Custody of the Sacred Convent of Assisi, the Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna, the Museo Archeologico Nazionale dell’Umbria, Fondazione Pistoletto Cittadellarte, and Pro Civitate Christiana. Rather than focusing on traditional hagiographic narratives, the exhibition intends to investigate this profound spiritual and cultural legacy by re-reading—through art—the themes carried by the Saint, particularly through works by some of the most meaningful artists of the twentieth century and the early years of the twenty-first century.

“As part of this exhibition, Fondazione Perugia reaffirms its commitment to promoting cultural projects capable of putting historical heritage and contemporary art into dialogue, while also enhancing the identity and history of the territory,” says Alcide Casini, President of Fondazione Perugia. “In the context of the eight hundred years since the death of Saint Francis, we wanted to offer the public a new perspective on a central figure for Umbria and for universal culture, through a project realized in collaboration with the Galleria Nazionale dell’Umbria, strengthening the network of cultural institutions across the city.”

The exhibition unfolds through the rooms of Palazzo Baldeschi, bringing together works by artists—each with distinct languages and sensibilities—who have intercepted and reinterpreted these themes. Visitors encounter Alberto Burri’s austere materials, the spiritual tension of William Congdon, the evocative sculptures of Mimmo Paladino, and the installations by Jannis Kounellis.

Michelangelo Pistoletto’s well-known Venere degli stracci reflects on the balance between nature and artifice. Emilio Isgrò directly engages with the Saint, applying his characteristic conceptual “cancellations”: they do not forbid or destroy words, but rather protect them—even in the Canticle of the Creatures. Omar Galliani’s diptych In Lumine Dei offers a direct tribute to the Canticle, with the text inscribed on the gilded surface of one of the two panels, alongside a back-turned female figure. The work questions the experience of the divine: as in Franciscan teaching, light is not merely an object of contemplation, but a diffused presence that permeates every form of the living, turning the body into a space of resonance, welcome, and the possible manifestation of the sacred.

Gerardo Dottori created works openly inspired by the figure of Saint Francis. In the creations of Marina Abramović, Mario Ceroli, Giuseppe Penone, Nicola Samorì, Luigi Serafini, Kiki Smith, Bruno Ceccobelli, and Maurizio Cattelan, themes such as the relationship between human beings and nature, the spiritual dimension of matter, the fragility of existence, and the meaning of the sacred in contemporary times are explored—examples that show how contemporary art has gathered, whether explicitly or implicitly, the Franciscan legacy.

Alongside Gino De Dominicis’ Tentativo di volo, the exhibition also includes works by Giuseppe Uncini, Leoncillo, Sabrina Mezzaqui, Flavio Favelli, Serse, and some older artifacts: devotional medals and reliquaries that testify to the cult that the Saint has been honored with over the centuries.

Ten graphic works by Paul Cézanne, Jean Cocteau, Alberto Giacometti, Mario Sironi, Odilon Redon, Maurice Denis, Marc Chagall, Paul Gauguin, Pablo Picasso, and Henri Rousseau from the Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna will complete the exhibition itinerary.

The collaboration with the Galleria Nazionale dell’Umbria was fundamental not only for bringing this event to life, but also for creating a networked project that strengthens the role of local cultural institutions and offers visitors a new perspective on Saint Francis—who was born and lived in Umbria. He is presented not only as a protagonist of history, but as a living presence that remains deeply relevant today.

SAN FRANCESCO – Nostro contemporaneo tra Arte e Spiritualità confirms the attention Fondazione Perugia has shown for contemporary art over the years—as a bridge between time and culture—and, through its original projects, manages to engage the public in readings and re-readings that are always new and unexpected.

The exhibition catalogue is published by Fabrizio Fabbri Editore. In addition to an introductory essay by curator Costantino D’Orazio, the volume includes short contributions by Davide Rondoni, Fra Giulio Cesareo, Italo Tomassoni, Massimo Duranti, Tiziana Caponi, and Samuele Ranucci.