Olnick Spanu to Present New Exhibition and Art Space

Kayla Pantano (May 03, 2017)
The Hillyer Art Space in Washington, D.C. presents an exciting exhibition from May 5—July 2, featuring Italian artists Marco Bagnoli, Domenico Bianchi, and Remo Salvadori, whose work will also be part of the inaugural show at the Magazzino Italian Art to open on June 28.

Husband-and-wife team, Nancy Olnick and Giorgio Spanu, who grew up on two very distant islands—Manhattan and Sardinia respectively, have quietly accumulated a 400-piece plus collection of postwar Italian art from a movement known as Arte Povera. However, they recently expanded their collection to include work from three artists representative of the next generation, which will be featured in an upcoming exhibition called Marco Bagnoli, Domenico Bianchi, Remo Salvadori: From The Olnick Spanu Collection. In partnership with the Italian Embassy and the Italian Cultural Institute, the exhibition will be on view at the Hillyer Art Space in Washington, D.C. from May 5—July 2. These artists will also be part of the inaugural show at Magazzino Italian Art, a new warehouse art space founded by the collector couple in New York’s Hudson Valley.

Olnick and Spanu selected Bagnoli, Bianchi, and Salvadori because their work is imbued with the illustrious history of Italian art, as well as a profound understanding of today's world and man’s search for meaning. These artists continue to explore the human condition and the greater cosmos, and are an example of the artistic talent flourishing in Italy today. Their hopes are that the exhibition will inform American audiences of the relevance of Contemporary Italian Art, as well as present three influential artists who are lesser known in the States. For more information, click here.

The Olnick Spanu Collection and Their New Art Space

In development since the 1990s, the Olnick Spanu Collection centers on works by conceptual and contemporary Italian artists, with a strong focus on artists associated with the aforementioned Arte Povera movement. It also includes a thoughtfully curated collection of Murano Glass—a breathtaking tribute to design, color, and light, featuring over 500 hand-blown works from the 20th and 21st century.

Due to the scale and fragility of their collection, they created a private space to display the artwork in order to share their "experience and education with family, friends, and an interested audience who may not be familiar with the power of Italian Art,” according to Olnick. Located in Cold Spring, 60 miles north of Manhattan, Magazzino is nestled on a 18,000 square-foot-campus on the former site of a dairy operation revamped by the architect Miguel Quismondo. The inaugural exhibition, due to open on June 28, will focus on the late gallerist Margherita Stein, featuring about 70 artworks spanning four decades. The institution will offer free admission by appointment only.

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