On the centenary of his birth, the Ragghianti Foundation pays homage to the great French artist François Morellet From June 25 to July 19, 2026. The Foundation for the Study Centre on Lycian and Carlo Ludovico Ragghianti Art in Lucca presents in the first cloister of the monumental complex of San Micheletto the installation of the light work “π piquant neonly - 1=6°”, created in 2005 by François Morellet
Inauguration Wednesday, June 24, 2026, 6:30 PM
On the centennial of the birth and ten years since the death of the great French artist François Morellet (Cholet, 1926–2016), various cultural and exhibition organisations active in Italy, in recognition of the intense and significant relationship he cultivated with our country (where he first presented his work in 1960 at the Galleria Azimut in Milan, at the invitation of Piero Manzoni), have joined forces in a project parallel to the exhibition promoted across the Alps by the Centre Pompidou. Curated by Paolo Bolpagni and Alessandro Gallicchio, with organizational coordination by A arte Invernizzi, the program , from north to south, features a flourish of initiatives dedicated to Morellet's memory.
The Ragghianti Foundation could not miss Lucca, which on June 25th at 6:30 pm will see the inauguration of a suggestive installation, in the first cloister of the San Micheletto Monumental Complex (where it is located), of the 2005 luminous work “π piquant neonly - 1=6°,” which will be on display to the public until July 19th, with free admission. Rachel Morellet , the artist's granddaughter, who has made Tuscany her home for years, will be present at the opening ceremony on behalf of the family and the archive; she will be present together with President Raffaele Domenici and Director Paolo Bolpagni .
From the French Academy in Rome - Villa Medici (curated by Alessandro Gallicchio) to Bocconi University (curated by Ettore Buganza) and A arte Invernizzi in Milan (where an exhibition curated by Luca Massimo Barbero is currently underway until 17 July), passing through the Palladian Villa Pisani Bonetti in Bagnolo di Lonigo (curated by Francesca Pola), the MACAMorterone Museum (curated by Angela Faravelli) and the Biscozzi | Rimbaud Foundation in Lecce (curated by Lorenzo Madaro), from May to November there is a veritable flowering of exhibitions, which are part of the project “∞François Morellet∞ Centenary in Italy 1926-2026” , carried out in close collaboration with the studio-archive in Cholet (France).
The connection to the Ragghianti Foundation is significant: the artist's last exhibition inaugurated during his lifetime was, in 2016, a double solo show entitled "Sguardi paralleli" (Parallel Views) , which the San Micheletto foundation dedicated to him, curated by its current director, Paolo Bolpagni, juxtaposing his works with those of Milanese artist Mario Ballocco in a spectacular installation that many still remember. The catalogue produced at the time also published, for the first time in Italian translation, a seminal text on poetics that Morellet wrote in 1971: "Dallospettiva allospettiva" (From the Spectator to the Spectator). With his paintings of simple, geometric forms and his celebrated light installations, he was among those who revolutionized the global art scene in the second half of the twentieth century. From the 1950s onwards, he proved to be a pioneer, anticipating trends and movements, from kinetic-programmed and optical expressions to Minimalism. Between 1961 and 1968, he was also one of the protagonists of the legendary GRAV, the Group de Recherche d'Art Visuel . One of his mottos was: "remain as closely in touch with the public as possible."
At the end of these six months of initiatives, a catalogue will be published by Metilene of Pistoia. It will document all the installations and exhibitions, with texts by the curators and various scholars involved in the various exhibition venues. The volume will be presented at the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University at the end of November during a study day, curated by Francesca Pola, dedicated to François Morellet.
The installation exhibited at the Ragghianti Foundation, "π piquant neonly - 1=6°," is composed of fourteen neon elements . In a dynamic dimension, the movement inherent in the work's geometries becomes rhythm, and is visualized in its structure. The opening pauses of each luminous component are punctuated according to modalities rationally determined by chance and the Greek number pi.
François Morellet - π piquant neonly - 1=6°
edited by Paolo Bolpagni
Lucca, Monumental Complex of San Micheletto
June 25 - July 19, 2026
Free admission
Information
Licia and Carlo Ludovico Ragghianti Art Study Center Foundation - ETS
Via San Micheletto, 3
55100 Lucca
T. +39 0583 467205