The Mart presents a precious tribute to Guido Strazza (Santa Fiora, Grosseto, 1922), one of the most sophisticated painters and engravers on the Italian scene, curated by the Archivio del ’900.

After his Futurist debut in aeropainting exhibitions organised by Marinetti and his experience in South America between 1948 and 1953 (Peru, Chile, Brazil), Strazza returned to Italy and in 1963, settled permanently in Rome. There he attended the workshops at the Calcografia Nazionale: as part of his research into the sign, involving all his work, he further developed the language of engraving and its techniques. He had solo rooms at the 1968 and 1984 Biennials, and his honours include the Antonio Feltrinelli Prize for Graphics in 1988 and for Engraving in 2003, awarded by the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei.

In 2018, thanks to the keen interest from Giuseppe Appella - who dedicated several publications to Strazza, including the Catalogo generale dell’opera incisa [General Catalogue of Engravings] (Allemandi, Turin 2020) - the artist donated an important collection to the Mart.

The selection exhibited in the Foyer of the Archivio del ’900 from 8 March to 29 June 2025, is drawn from this precious set of materials that is somewhere between a Library and Collections, between printmaking and painting. Beginning with Cuzco - Machu Picchu, a portfolio from 1953, and ending with Novena, from 2002, the exhibition presents a few examples of the long and uninterrupted artistic research that focused first on the rigour of the sign-light and light-geometry relationships and later on an increasingly gestural approach.