agjili High fashion meets high art: Fendi sponsors Louise Bourgeois exhibit in Rome, Italy
The Borghese collection in Rome held special significance for Bourgeois, inspiring her work throughout her career and many visits to Italy
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Italian luxury house Fendi has launched “Louise Bourgeois: Unconscious Memories,” an exhibition featuring the renowned French-American artist at Rome’s Galleria Borghese.
The collaboration marks another milestone in Fendi’s standing practice with art patronage projects. Fendi’s history of cultural preservation includes the restoration of Rome’s iconic Trevi Fountain in 2013 and four other fountains in 2016—the fountains del Gianicolo, del Mosè, del Ninfeo del Pincio, and del Peschiera.
Sculptural work of Louise Bourgeois
“Spiral Woman”
Throughout the years, the brand has consistently supported art through temporary exhibitions and donations to public spaces. In 2017, Fendi expanded its cultural initiatives by establishing a school for the conservation and restoration of cultural heritage, focusing on youth training.
The same year, Fendi announced a three-year partnership with Galleria Borghese, resulting in various cultural projects including exhibitions honoring Bernini and Picasso.
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Continuing Fendi’s tradition of artistic collaboration, the brand opened the exhibition “Louise Bourgeois: Unconscious Memories” on June 21, 2024.
Installation view of Bourgeois’ “The Last Climb”
The French-American artist, famous for her imposing spider-like sculptures, is celebrated throughout the museum’s hallowed halls. The exhibition showcases about 20 sculptures, displayed in the aviary and the Meridiana garden—areas Bourgeois herself first explored during her 1967 visit.
The Borghese collection in Rome held special significance for Bourgeois, inspiring her work throughout her career and many visits to Italy.
Bourgeois (1911-2010) had a seven-decade career that significantly influenced critical approaches in contemporary art. She was among the first artists to incorporate psychoanalysis and feminism into her work.
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“No Exit” at the Villa Medici
In the 1960s, following intensive psychoanalysis, Bourgeois began experimenting with biomorphic forms using materials like latex, plaster, and wax. Her artistic evolution continued into the 1990s when she introduced her first group of “Cells,” installations filled with sculpted elements.
Known for works that revolve around themes of metamorphosis, memory, and inner states, Bourgeois’ work is complemented by the contemporary lens of curatorship, and its historical situatedness in the century-old building of the Galleria Borghese.
Fendi’s “Louise Bourgeois: Unconscious Memories” is a landmark event, being the first exhibition at Galleria Borghese dedicated to a female contemporary artist.
“Louise Bourgeois: Unconscious Memories” runs from June 21 to Sept. 15, 2024. Galleria Borghese is open Tuesday to Sunday from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. at Piazzale Scipione Borghese, 5, 00197 Rome, Italy.