Leonor Fini
Considered one of the most important artists of the 20th century, but also one of the most misunderstood, Leonor Fini (1907–1996) has been the subject of a passionate reevaluation in recent years. Multiple auction records, increasing representation of her painting in museums… the Minsky Gallery is celebrating this important moment in the history of her reception through three exhibitions organized under the curatorship of Richard Overstreet, Leonor Fini’s beneficiary. At the same time, she is also receiving the honors of the Centre Pompidou’s major exhibition on surrealism.
As a first part, the Minsky Gallery is organizing a solo show by Leonor Fini including masterpieces from the 1920s to the 1990s. Some twenty paintings that reveal the extraordinary palette, between symbolism and surrealism, between dream and lucidity, of Leonor Fini, including two rare self-portraits from the 1940s and 1950s that are exceptionally presented to the public. Born in Argentina before growing up in Trieste, Italy, this “scandalous” person, according to André Breton, hated being labeled! In three successive exhibitions, until January 15, 2025, the Minsky Gallery, which has represented her since 1978, offers a beautiful exploration of her extravagances. We thus discover Nebbia (1982), an enigmatic canvas that recalls a foggy theater scene (for which Leonor Fini worked on the costumes as well as the sets or posters…).
Two pearl and tulle masks also open a door to her grand intimate ball, where the Italian aristocrat and painter Stanislao Lepri, partner of the trouple formed with the scholar Constantin Jelenski, plays a leading role. From November 7, the Minsky gallery will present them together in a second exhibition, before showing their works on paper in a final hanging.
