Elisabetta Benassi (b. 1966, Rome, Italy) uses a range of media, including installation, sculpture, photography, and video, to question modernity through the materials of its artistic, cultural, and political dimensions. In her work, Benassi engages histories local to global, fleeting to tragic, through conversation and dialogue. Material and metaphor are psychologically engaged to expose how the construction and destruction of ideologies unfold through the artifacts and archives in which we preserve events. With investigation and query, Benassi’s work finds forms with which to challenge the clean lineages of memory, to attend to contested histories and obscured through-lines, in order to question both how and whose modernity perseveres.
Benassi lives and works in Rome. She has had solo exhibitions at the Fondazione Adolfo Pini, Milan (2021); Galerie Jousse Entreprise, Paris (2018); Collezione Maramotti, Italy (2017); Magazzino, Rome (2016); and CRAC Alsace, Altkirch (2013). Her work has been included in group exhibitions at MAXXI, Rome (2022); The National Gallery, Rome (2021); Middelheim Museum, Antwerp (2021); Wellin Museum of Art, New York (2020); Centre Pompidou, Paris, and West Bund Museum Project, Shanghai (2019); Palazzo Reale, Milan (2018); and Kunsthalle Wien, Vienna (2017). Benassi’s work can be found in the collections of the Castello di Rivoli, Turin; MAXXI, Rome; Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris; The Philadelphia Museum of Art; and Museo d’Arte Moderna di Bologna. She has featured in the 2011, 2013, and 2015 editions of La Biennale di Venezia.
BIOGRAPHY
1966 Born in Rome.
Lives and works in Rome.
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2024 Museo d’Arte Contemporanea di Roma, Italy. Elisabetta Benassi: Autoritratto al lavoro
(9 May – 25 August). Catalogue.
Peter Freeman, Inc., New York. Elisabetta Benassi: The Drowned World
(11 January – 9 March)
2023 ArtLine Milano, Parco d’Arte Contemporanea, CityLife District, Italy. City Lights,
curated by Roberto Pinto (permanent installation)
Antinori Art Project, Cantina Antinori, San Casciano in Val di Pesa, Italy.
La fanciulla del West, curated by Ilaria Bonacossa (June)
2022 Museo Nazionale Romano, Crypta Balbi, Rome. Empire
(permanent installation)
Litografia Bulla, Rome. Pietre di testa
(10 December 2022 – 28 February 2023)
2021 Fondazione Adolfo Pini, Milan. Lady and Gentlemen,
curated by Gabi Scardi (14 September – 17 December)
2019 Italian Institute, London. Empire
(17–30 April). Exhibition travelled: Museo Nazionale Romano, Palazzo Altemps, Italy
(21 June – 1 September); Mostyn, Llandudno, Wales (13 July – 27 October);
Crypta Balbi, Museo Nazionale Romano, Italy (October);
Pontificia Academia dei Virtuosi al Pantheon, Rome (October)
2018 Galerie Jousse Entreprise, Paris. The Sovereign Individual
(26 May – 21 July)
2017 Collezione Maramotti, Reggio Emilia, Italy. Elisabetta Benassi: It Starts with the Firing
(7 May – 17 September)
Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana, Palazzo Mattei, di Paganica, Rome. Passato e Presente,
curated by Iacopo Ceni (27 April)
2016 Magazzino d’Arte Moderna, Rome. Letargo
(15 December 2016 – 31 March 2017)
2015 Palazzo Carignano, Turin. MareoMerz
(27 May – 10 November)
Galerie Jousse Entreprise, Paris. That’s Me in the Picture
(10 January – 28 February)
2014 Villa Mondolfo, Como, Italy. 031
(12 June – 31 July)
2013 CRAC Alsace, Altkirch, France. Smog a Los Angeles,
curated by Elfi Turpin (27 October 2013 – 26 January 2014)
Hezi Cohen Gallery, Tel Aviv. Elisabetta Benassi: Golden Rock
(12 September – 16 October)
Fondazione Merz, Turin. Voglio fare subito una mostra
(15 May – 8 September)
2011 FIAC, Grand Palais, Paris. Soledad
(20–23 October)
2010 Magazzino d’Arte Moderna, Rome. All I Remember
(11 May – 30 June)
2009 Art | 40 | Basel, Switzerland. Unlimited
(10–14 June)
2007 Museo d’Arte Provincia di Nuoro, Italy. Site Specific #2,
curated by Maria Rosa Sossai (25 May – 2 September)
2006 Magazzino d’Arte Moderna, Rome. 3
(4 December 2006 – 31 January 2007)
2005 Random Gallery (Air de Paris and Praz-Delavallade), France. Sequence 2#
(10 September – 29 October)
Base. Progetti per l’arte, Florence. Abandoned in Place
(24 May – 30 July)
2004 MACRO Museo d’Arte Contemporanea di Roma, Italy. Elisabetta Benassi:
Tutti morimmo a stento, curated by Gianfranco Maraniello (30 January – 9 May)
2003 American Academy in Rome, Italy. Noon,
curated by Cornelia Lauf (4 February – 15 April)
2001 Galleria Massimo De Carlo, Milan. In moto
(September)
Galleria Antonella Nicola, Turin. Day’s End
(12 April – 26 May)
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2024 Fondazione Memmo, Rome. In a Light Breeze
(14 December 2024 – 31 March 2025)
Collezione Maramotti, Reggio Emilia, Italy. Through the Floods
(27 October 2024 – 16 February 2025)
Peter Freeman, Inc., Paris. En travaux
(16–26 October)
Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Humlebæk, Denmark. OCEAN
(11 October 2024 – 27 April 2025). Catalogue.
Palazzo Nicolosio Lomellino, Genova. Leggere il tempo. Libri nell’arte XXI secolo
(24 April – 30 June)
Galerie Jousse Enterprise, Paris. Sophie
(1–24 February)
2023 Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Rome. E la mia Patria è dove: l’erba trema,
curated by Giuseppe Appella (20 September – 19 November)
MAXXI Museo Nazionale delle Arti del XXI Secolo, Rome. Fuori Tutto,
curated by Bartolomeo Pietromarchi (28 June 2023 – 25 February 2024)
Gilda Lavia, Rome. Le stele di San Lorenzo,
curated by Valentina Ciarallo (31 March – 10 June)
Galleria Mattia De Luca, Rome. Le ferite di Roma,
curated by Marco Bassan and Ludovico Pratesi (23 February – 31 March)
Peter Freeman, Inc., New York. BACK
(12 January – 25 February)
2022 Magazzino d’Arte Moderna, Rome. Celebration
(20 December 2022 – 28 February 2023)
Magazzino d’Arte Moderna, Rome. Gathering
(15 December 2022 – 31 January 2023)
MAXXI Museo Nazionale delle Arti del XXI Secolo, Rome. Pier Paolo Pasolini. Tutto è santo,
curated by Hou Hanry, Bartolomeo Pietromarchi, and Giulia Ferracci
(16 November 2022 – 12 March 2023)
Gazometro, Rome. Videocittà,
curated by Damiana Leoni and Rä di Martino (20 July – 24 July)
Villa Adriana, Tivoli, Italy. Vita Nova III,
curated by Andrea Bruciati (14 July – 20 November)
EUR Photo Project, Rome. Pasolini – Ipotesi di raffigurazione,
curated by Marco Delogu, Andrea Cortellessa, and Silvia De Laude.
Exhibition travelled: Italian Cultural Institute, Madrid (17 June – 17 September)
By Art Matters, Huangzhou, China. Building and Dreaming,
curated by Francesco Bonami (28 May – 6 October)
Anozero – Bienal de Arte Contemporânea de Coimbra, Convent Santa Clara a Nova, Portugal.
Midnight, curated by Filipa Oliveira and Elfi Turpin (9 April – 26 June)
2021 Procida, Italy. Panorama,
curated by Vincenzo de Bellis (2–5 September)
MACRO Museo d’Arte Contemporanea, Rome. The Feuilleton: I will bear witness,
curated by Jo Melvin (6–7 July)
Museo di Scultura Antica Giovanni Barracco, Rome.
La Vita Nova: L’amore in Dante nello sguardo di 10 artiste,
curated by Alessandra Mammi (9 June – 3 October)
MAXXI Museo delle Arti del XXI Secolo, Palazzo Ardinghelli L’Aquila, Rome.
Punto di equilibrio: Pensiero Spazio Luce da Toyo Ito a Ettore Spalletti,
curated by Bartolomeo Pietromarchi and Margherita Guccione (30 May 2021 – 20 February 2022)
Middelheim Museum, Antwerp. Congoville: contemporary artists tracing colonial tracks,
curated by Sandrine Colard (29 May – 3 October)
Magazzino d’Arte Moderna, Rome. Ascolto Il Tuo Cuore, Città
(5 March – 10 April)
La Galleria Nazionale, Rome. Io dico Io – I say I
(27 February – 23 May)
2020 Mura Aureliane, Rome. Insieme,
curated by Gianni Politi (22 October – 30 November)
Center for Contemporary Art, Plodiv, Bulgaria. After Pasolini – Vision of today,
curated by Bettina Steinbrugge and Benjamin Fellmann (4 September – 4 October)
Centro per l’Arte Contemporanea Luigi Pecci, Prato, Italy. Extra Flags
(20 May – 11 October)
Galerie Jousse Entreprise, Paris. Reality Is Not What It Seems,
curated by Sophie Vigourous (29 February – 6 June)
Wellin Museum of Art, Clinton, New York. SUM Artists: Visual Diagrams and Systems-Based Explorations,
curated by Matthew Deleget and Rossana Martinez (15 February – 14 June)
Galerie Jousse Enterprise, Paris. Group Exhibition
(6–22 February)
Martina Simeti, Milan. Non si può essere incolti al punto da amare solo cose di alta qualità,
curated by Valérie Da Costa (24 January – 19 March)
Arte Fiera, Bologna, Italy. Courtesy Emilia-Romagna: L’opera aperta,
curated by Eva Brioschi (24–26 January)
Q&A Questions & Appearances, Kadist. Instagram project.
Fondazione Nicola Trussardi, Milan. Viaggi da camera
MACRO Museo per l’immaginazione preventiva, Rome. Jomo. Joy of missing out,
curated by Luca Lo Pinto. Online project.
2019 Temple Bar Gallery and Studios, Dublin. Publication Scaffold,
curated by Michele Horrigan, Sean Lynch and Jo Melvin (22–23 November)
Centre Pompidou and West Bund Museum Project, Shanghai.
The Shape of Time: Highlights of the Centre Pompidou Collection Vol. 1,
curated by Marcella Lista (8 November 2019 – 9 May 2021)
Kai 3 gallery, Vienna. The Other is Oneself,
curated by Fiona Liewehr and Franz Josefs (5 November – 14 December)
Bibo’s Place, Todi, Italy. Divergenze,
curated by Andrea Bizzarro and Matteo Boetti (28 September – 23 December)
Villa Zito, Palermo. Intermezzo,
curated by Agata Polizzi (17 June – 20 December)
Parco Archeologico di Pompei, Palestra Grande, Italy. La morale dei singoli,
curated by Andrea Viliani (15 June – 1 December)
Novecento, Venice. Looking for Utopia,
curated by Melania Rossi and Bianca Cerrina Ferroni (10 May – 8 July)
Peter Freeman, Inc., New York. Untitled
(12 January – 16 February)
2018 Villa Lontana, Rome. Archeologi,
curated by Jo Melvin and Vittoria Bonifati (13 October – 10 November)
Galerie Jousse Entreprise, Paris. Affinité(s)
(8–22 September)
Palazzo Iannucci, Pereto, Italy. Straperetana 2018. Il tempo svogliato,
curated by Saverio Verini (7 July – 5 August)
Palazzo Drago, Palermo. Sguardi, Manifesta 12,
curated by Mario Gorni and Francesco Pantaleone (16 June – 4 November)
Villa Lontana, Rome. Sculptureless Sculpture at Villa Lontana,
curated by Vittoria Bonifati and Jo Melvin (16 May – 6 June)
Ex Biblioteca Universitaria, Sassari, Italy. No Man’s Library / La Biblioteca di Tutti,
curated by Zerynthia (11 May – 30 June)
The Art Laundrette, Glasgow. One Missing Sock After Doing Laundry,
curated by Giulia Colletti (18 April – 25 April)
Palazzo Reale, Milan. Italiana, L’Italia vista dalla moda 1971–2001,
curated by Maria Luisa Frisa and Stefano Tonchi (21 February – 6 May)
Cinéma 2, Centre Pompidou, Paris. Vidéo et après
(15 January – 10 December)
2017 Frutta Gallery, Rome. HO HO HO,
curated by Alek O., Gabriele De Santis, and Santo Tolone (25 November 2017 – 10 March 2018)
Artissima, Lingotto Fiere, Turin. Deposito d’Arte Italiana Presente,
curated by Ilaria Bonacossa and Vittoria Martini (3–5 November)
Mu.ZEE, Ostend, Belgium. The Raft. Art is (not) Lonely,
curated by Jan Fabre and Joanna De Vos (22 October 2017 – 15 April 2018)
MAXXI Museo Nazionale delle Arti del XXI Secolo, Rome.
Doppio schermo: Film e video d’artista in Italia dagli anni ’60 a oggi,
curated by Bruno di Marino (19 September – 9 November)
Galerie 3, Centre Pompidou, Paris. Après,
curated by Eric Baudelaire and Marcella Lista (6–18 September)
Galleria Pio Monti, Rome. On the road
(15 June – 15 July)
Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, Turin. A House, Halfway,
curated by Andrew de Brún, Inês Geraldes Cardoso, and Kateryna Filyuk (16 May – 15 October)
MAXXI Museo Nazionale delle Arti del XXI Secolo, Rome. MAXXI Collection: The Place To Be,
curated by Margerita Guccione and Bartolomeo Pietromarchi (6 May – 21 October)
Ex Mercato Civico, Alghero, Italy. In-Giro / A-Round,
curated by Zerynthia (30 April – 25 June)
Centre d’Art Contemporain Les Capucins, Embrun, France. Parade du Oui et du Non,
curated by Kristina Solomoukha and Paolo Codeluppi (19 April – 10 June)
Palazzo Valmarana Braga, Vicenza, Italy. 10-2015, Notes on Italian Videoart,
curated by Andrea Bruciati (3–13 April)
Kunsthalle Wien, Austria. More Than Just Words [On the Poetic],
curated by Luca Lo Pinto and Vanessa Joan Muller (8 March – 7 May)
MAXXI Museo Nazionale delle Arti del XXI Secolo, Rome. Please Come back. The world as a prison?,
curated by Hou Hanru and Luigia Leonardelli (9 February – 28 May). Exhibition travelled:
Institut Valencià d’Art Modern, Spain (28 November 2017 – 8 April 2018). Catalogue.
Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Rome. Sensible Comune – Le opere vive,
curated by Ilaria Bussoni, Nicolas Martino, Cesare Pietroiusti (14–22 January)
2016 21er Haus, Belvedere, Vienna. Franz West: ARTISTCLUB
(14 December 2016 – 23 April 2017)
FRAC Sud, Marseilles. D’une Méditerranée – L’autre,
curated by Francesco Bonami and Emanuela Mazzonis (26 November 2016 – 12 February 2017)
Fondazione Baruchello, Rome. Start up Quattro Agenzie per la produzione del possibile,
a project by Gianfranco Baruchello, curated by Maria Alicata and Carla Subrizi
(9 November 2016 – 28 April 2017)
Palazzo della Misericordia, Bergamo, Italy. Lo spazio concavo,
curated by Sara Benaglia and Mauro Zanchi (22 October – 27 November)
Foro Palatino, Rome. Par Tibi, Roma, Nihil, curated by Raffaella Frascarelli
(23 June – 23 October)
Fórum Eugénio de Almeida, Évora, Portugal. Todo o Património é Poesia,
curated by Filipa Oliveira (14 May – 28 August)
2015 Museo Carlo Bilotti, Rome. Delta ti – tempo reale
(17 December 2015 – 17 January 2016)
Centre Culturel Saint-Raphaël, France. Des écrits aux écrans
(31 October 2015 – 9 January 2016)
Chiesa del Carmine di Palazzo Lanfranchi,
Museo Nazionale di Arte Medievale e Moderna della Basilicata, Matera, Italy.
In gran moltitudine, curated by Achille Bonito Oliva (31 October 2015 – 10 February 2016)
Fondazione Brescia Musei, Brescia Mobilità and Comune di Brescia, Italy. SubBrixia
(October 2015 – June 2016)
Fondazione Pastificio Cerere, Rome. 519+40,
curated by Marcello Smarrelli (19 October 2015 – 9 January 2016)
Collezione Maramotti, Reggio Emilia, Italy. Industriale Immaginario,
curated by Marina Dacci (4 October 2015 – 31 July 2016)
Museo Ettore Fico, Turin. Liberi tutti!,
curated by Luca Beatrice, Andrea Busto, and Cristiana Perrella (9 July – 18 October)
Palazzo Carignano, Turin. Mareo Merz,
curated by Francesco Poli (27 May – 10 November)
American Academy in Rome, Italy. Nero Su bianco,
curated by Robert Storr, Lyle Ashton Harris and Peter Benson Miller (26 May – 19 July)
Belgian Pavilion at the 56th International Art Exhibition, Biennale di Venezia, Italy.
Personnes et les autres – Vincent Meessen and guests, curated by Katerina Gregos (9 May – 22 November)
Galerie Jousse Entreptise, Paris. Accrochage
(5–23 May)
2014 Institut Culturel Italien de Paris, France. You Can’t Take It With You
(22–25 October)
Castello di Rivoli Museo d’Arte Contemporanea, Turin. Manifest Intention: Drawing in all its forms,
curated by Beatrice Merz and Marianna Vecellio (11 October 2014 – 25 January 2015)
PAC, Milan. Glitch, Interferenze tra arte e cinema,
curated by Davide Giannella (11 October 2014 – 6 January 2015)
Foro Italico, Rome. Iconica: Arte urbana al Foro Italico,
curated by Bartolomeo Pietromarchi and Maria Alicata (8 June – 21 September)
SongEun ArtSpace, Seoul. Italy in SongEun: We Have Never Been Modern,
curated by Angelo Gioè and Maria Rosa Sossai (8 May – 9 August)
Musée d’art contemporain de Lyon, France. Motopoétique,
curated by Paul Ardenne and Barbara Polla (21 February – 20 April)
2013 MAXXI Museo Nazionale delle Arti del XXI Secolo, Rome. Non basta ricordare,
curated by Hou Hanru, Margherita Guccione, and Anna Mattirolo
(20 December 2013 – 28 September 2014)
Teatro della Casa d’Italia, Istanbul. The world has already been filmed, now it is time to transform it,
curated by Maria Rosa Sossai (12–16 September)
Ikono on Air Festival, curated by Jack Pam. TV and live webstream.
(6–29 September)
Nomas Foundation, Rome. AB,
curated by Gabriele De Santis (19 June – 27 September).
Italian Pavilion at the 55th International Art Exhibition, Biennale di Venezia, Italy. vice versa,
curated by Bartolomeo Pietromarchi (1 June – 24 November)
Magazzino d’Arte Moderna, Rome. Encore Plus
(20 February – 31 March)
Second Street Gallery, Charlottesville, Virginia. She Says: Propositions by 3 Italian Women Artists,
curated by Rebecca Schoenthal and Leslie Cozzi (4–26 January)
2012 Magazzino d’Arte Moderna, Rome. Encore!
(18 December 2012 – 31 January 2013)
Museo d’Arte Contemporanea, Rome. Ritratto di una città. Arte a Roma 1960–2001,
curated by Bartolomeo Pietromarchi and Benedetta Carpi De Resmini
(29 November 2012 – 26 May 2013)
La Maison Rouge, Paris. Retour à l’intime, la collection Giuliana et Tommaso Setari
(20 October 2012 – 13 January 2013)
Zentrum für Kunst und Medien, Karlsruhe, Germany. ARTandPRESS – Art. Truth. Reality.
(15 September 2012 – 10 March 2013)
Mechelen and Brussels, Belgium. Newtopia: The State of Human Rights,
curated by Katerina Gregos (1 September – 10 December)
Wiener Secession, Austria. Mutatis Mutandis,
curated by Catherine David (29 June – 2 September)
Castello di Rivoli Museo d’Arte Contemporanea, Italy. Oltre il muro,
curated by Beatrice Merz (15 June – 30 November)
Berlin Documentary Forum 2, Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin. A Blind Spot,
curated by Catherine David (31 May – 1 July)
Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin, and Zentrum für Kunst und Medien, Karlsruhe, Germany.
Art and Press: Kunst, Wahrheit, Wirklichkeit, curated by Walter Smerling and Peter Weibel
(16 September 2012 – 10 February 2013)
Muzej Suvremene Umjetnosti, Zagreb. Silences where things abandon themselves
(3 February – 4 March)
MAXXI Museo Nazionale delle Arti del XXI Secolo, Rome.
A proposito di Marisa Merz, riallestimento della collezione (26 January 2012 – 6 January 2013)
2011 Galleria d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Bergamo, Italy.
Il Bel Paese dell’arte. Etiche ed Estetiche della Nazione, curated by Giacinto di Pietrantonio
and Maria Cristina Rodeschini (28 November 2011 – 19 February 2012)
54th International Art Exhibition, La Biennale di Venezia, Italy. ILLUMInazioni | ILLUMInations,
curated by Bice Curiger (4 June – 27 November)
Castello di Rivoli Museo d’Arte Contemporanea, Italy. Tutto è connesso 2,
curated by Beatrice Merz (23 May – 18 September)
Italian Cultural Institute of Los Angeles, California.
When in Rome: Thirty works of art between now and then,
curated by Luca Lo Pinto and Valerio Manucci (20 April – 21 May)
Videoteca GAM, Turin. Eco e Narciso,
curated by Rebecca De Marchi and Elena Volpato (19 April – 14 May)
Centro Cultural Montehermoso de Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain.
Spaces of the Self – La feminedad en el videoarte italiano. Ciclo 11,
curated by Giovanna Zapperi (25 February – 3 July)
City Art Gallery Ljubljana, Slovenia. Traveling Companions,
curated by Alenka Gregorič (20 January – 6 March)
2010 Casa Tabarelli, Cornaiano, Bolzano, Italy. Chartreuse Jeune,
curated by Olaf Nico (25–28 November)
Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art, South Brisbane, Australia.
Pier Paolo Pasolini. We Are All in Danger (3 November – 1 December)
Galleria Continua / Le Moulin, Boissy-le-Châtel, France. Sphères 2010
(24 October 2010 – 1 May 2011)
Analix Forever, Geneva. Cars & Bikes
(20 May – 10 July)
Museo di Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Trento e Rovereto, Italy.
Linguaggi e Sperimentazioni. Giovani artisti in una collezione contemporanea,
curated by Giorgio Verzotti (8 May – 22 August)
Vancouver Art Gallery, Canada. CUE: Artists’ Videos,
curated by Diana Augaitis and Christopher Eamon (23 January – 21 March)
2009 Annet Gelink Gallery, Amsterdam. Italian Open,
curated by Art at Work (31 October – 19 December)
Hangar Bicocca, Milan. Fuori centro,
curated by Chiara Bertola and Rä di Martino (30 September – 20 December)
Siemens Sanat, Istanbul. Viatico / Yolluk,
curated by Vittorio Urbani and T. Melih Görgün (12 September – 15 November)
Magazzino d’Arte Moderna, Rome. Wintry
(23 July – 17 September)
Fondazione Merz, Turin. Meteorite in giardino,
curated by Maria Centonze (14 July – 26 July)
Fondazione Merz, Turin. Hopes and Doubts,
curated by Constantino D’Orazio (21 January – 1 March)
2008 The Dome City Center, Beirut, Lebanon. Hopes and Doubts,
curated by Constantino D’Orazio (20–23 December)
Galleria Edieuropa, Rome. Acromatica,
curated by Bartolomeo Pietromarchi (14 December 2008 – 7 February 2009)
Galerie Thomas Schulte, Berlin. Single Channel. Recent Video Works,
selected by Christopher Eamon (5 September – 4 October)
Seoul National University Museum of Art, South Korea.
Here Once Again: Where art and cinema intersect,
curated by Hyunjoo Byeon, Ilaria Gianni, and Jungmin Kwon (25 July – 23 August)
Palazzo delle Esposizioni, Rome. 15 Quadriennale d’Arte di Roma
(19 June – 14 September)
Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, Guarene d’Alba, Italy. Dai tempo al tempo,
curated by Joseph del Pesco, Fiona Parry, and Pelin Uran (25 May – 27 July)
Extra City for Contemporary Art, Antwerp. Mimétisme,
curated by Anselm Franke (25 January – 30 March)
Cinema Lumière, Bologna, Cineteca di Bologna – Evento ArteFiera. Off Italy. Film d’artista,
curated by Lelio Aiello (25 January)
The Stenerson Museum, Oslo. The Hot Season. Italian Art Now,
curated by Bartolomeo Pietromarchi and Lorella Scacco (17 January – 8 March)
2007 Lingotto Fiere, Turin. Artissima 14 Video Lounge. La Guerra, la pace, l’estasi,
curated by Cecilia Alemani (8–11 November)
Triennale di Milano, Italy. Annisettanta: Il decennio lungo del secolo breve,
curated by Gianni Canova (27 October 2007 – 30 March 2008)
Muzej moderne i suvremene umjetnosti, Rijeka, Croatia.
2nd Biennial of Quadrilateral – Culture Hero (14 October – 14 December)
International Centre of Graphic Arts, Ljubljana, Slovenia. 3500 cm2,
curated by Lorenzo Benedetti, part of the 27th Biennial of Graphic Art (6 September – 28 October)
Kunstraum Innsbruk, Austria. Soufflé eine Massenausstellung, from an idea by Franz West
(1 September – 13 October)
Auditorium di Mecenate, Stadio di Domiziano, Le Case Romane sotto San Paolo alla Regola, Rome.
Le luci dell’arte, curated by Ludovico Pratesi (12 July – 20 September)
Stadtkino Basel, Art | 38, Stadtkino Basel, Switzerland. Art Film,
curated by Benjamin Weil (10 June – 17 June)
Today Art Museum, Beijing. APT, International Video Art Exhibition,
curated by Dan Cameron (28 April – 2 May)
Palazzo Farnese, Rome. Luce di pietra,
curated by Henry-Claude Cousseau and Marcello Smarrelli (23 March – 15 April)
2006 Artissima, Lingotto, Turin. Constellations
(10–12 November)
Galleria Comunale d’Arte Contemporanea di Monfalcone, Italy. Videoreport Italia 2004–05,
curated by Andrea Bruciati (13 October – 1 November)
Ex Deposito Locomotive S. Erasmo, Palermo. Girato a Palermo,
curated by Marcello Faletra and Ida Parlavecchio (9–24 September)
Gertrude Contemporary Art Spaces, Melbourne. Frame,
curated by Chiara Agnello and Roberta Tenconi (26 August – 23 September)
Villa Rufolo, Ravello, Italy. The Game is on,
curated by Achille Bonita Oliva (30 June – 17 September)
Fondazione Pitti Discovery, Stazione Leopolda, Florence. Human Game. Vincitori e vinti
(21 June – 21 July)
Galleria Pia Monti, Rome. Il Buco,
curated by Achille Bonita Oliva and F. David Peat (21 June – 21 July)
Galleria Civica di Arte Contemporanea di Trento, Italy. Cinema Infinito/Neverending Cinema,
a project by ZimmerFrei (4 June – 1 October)
Museum of Contemporary Art, Shanghai. Italy Made in Art: Now,
curated by Achille Bonito Oliva (1 June – 15 July)
Rialto Santambrogio, Rome. 3500 cm2,
curated by Lorenzo Benedetti (4–20 March)
Museo d’Arte Provincia di Nuoro, Italy. Modern Times Volume 2,
curated by Maria Rosa Sossa (20 January – 26 March)
2005 Castel del Monte, Andria, Italy. Intramoenia Extra Art
(18 December 2005 – 26 February 2006)
Angelo Mai, Rome. Loop,
curated by Lorenzo Benedetti and Francesco Stocchi (18–20 December)
Galleria d’Arte Moderna, Bologna, Italy. Drive. Automobili nell’arte contemporanea,
curated by Gianfranco Maraniello (11 December 2005 – 5 March 2006)
Museo di Roma in Trastevere, Italy. Pasolini a Roma,
curated by Enzo Siciliano and Federica Pirani (21 October 2005 – 22 January 2006)
Museum Ludwig, Cologne. KunstFilmBiennale
(19–24 October)
Museo d’Arte Provincia di Nuoro, Italy. BYO. Bring Your Own,
curated by Saretto Cincinelli and Alberto Mugnaini (23 September 2005 – 8 January 2006)
Rione Monti, Rome. Tra-Monti 005
(15 September – 2 October)
Praz-Delavallde and Air de Paris, France. Random Gallery
(10 September – 20 October)
Slovak National Gallery, Esterhàzy Palace, Bratislava. No Code.,
curated by Cecilia Casorati (2 June – 3 September)
Stadio San Siro Giuseppe Meazza, Milan. Domus-Circular,
curated by Stefano Boeri (14–15 April)
Magazzino d’Arte Moderna, Rome. Doppia Visione,
curated by Maria Rosa Sossai (18–25 February)
Fabbrica del Vapore, Milan. Inhabituel, organized by Dena Foundation for Contemporary Art,
curated by Chiara Agnello (18 February – 6 March). Exhibition travelled:
Le Centre Culturel Françias de Milan, Italy (2–6 March)
Sinagoga di Ostia Antica, Italy. Arteinmemoria2,
curated by Adachiara Zevi (27 January – 15 March)
Centre Pompidou, Paris. Prospectif Cinéma
(27 January)
KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin. E-Flux video rental
2004 Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea and Casa delle Letterature, Rome.
I misteri di Roma, curated by Rita Camerlingo and Angela Rorro
(23 December 2004 – 13 February 2005)
Herzliya Museum, Tel Aviv. VideoZone2. The Second Biennial for Video Art in Israel,
curated by Anna Linder (17–24 November)
Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris. Dazibao d’images,
curated by Hou Hanru (2 October)
Certosa di San Lorenzo, Padula, Italy. Le opere e i giorni,
curated by Achille Bonito Oliva (18 June – 30 September)
Fondazione Nicola Trussardi, Milan/Venice. I nuovi mostri: una storia italiana
(February – March)
TPO Euraquarium, Bologna, Italy. Space in the place 03,
curated by Marco Altavilla (24 January)
Futura, Prague. Our personal vision,
curated by Paola Capata (15 January – 29 February)
Magazzino d’Arte Moderna, Rome. Doppia Visione, by Maria Rosa Sossai
(14 January – 17 March)
2003 Various locations, Naples. Petrolio,
curated by Mario Martone (November 2003 – February 2004)
Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, Turin. Lei. Donne nelle collezioni italiane
(7 November 2003 – 8 February 2004)
Chapelle des Louanges, École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts, Paris.
L’épreuve de l’étranger, curated by Stefano Chiodi (4 October)
Fondazione Lanfranco Baldi, Pelago, Italy. Italia, Italia,
curated by Lanfranco Baldi (9 July – 20 September)
Museion, Bolzano, Italy. Moltitudini Solitudini,
curated by Sergio Risaliti (7 June – 31 August)
Castello di Rivoli Museo d’Arte Contemporanea, Italy. I Moderni / The Moderns,
curated by Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev (16 April – 3 August)
2002 Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Manifesta 4
(25 May – 25 August)
Arnolfini, Bristol, UK. You’ll never walk alone,
curated by Lucy Steeds (May)
Palazzo delle Papesse and Santa Maria della Scala, Siena, Italy. De Gustibus,
curated by Achille Bonito Oliva and Sergio Risaliti (2 March – 12 May)
2001 Capsula Tellus, Rome. Festa dell’arte. Elisabetta Benassi, Lara Favaretto, Norma Jeane,
curated by Bartolomeo Pietromarchi (15 December)
Kunstverein Nürnberg, Germany. Anstoß. Kunst, Sport, und Politik
(17 September – 4 November)
Apex Art, New York. SportCult,
curated by Euridice Arratia (7 September – 6 October)
SMART Project Space, Amsterdam. Small Narratives: Unreal Presence,
curated by Samuel-Fuyumi Namioka (16 June – 22 July)
Bienal de Valencia, Spain. Videorom,
curated by Cristiana Perrella (12 June – 20 July)
Ex Manifattura Tabacchi, Florence. Boom!,
curated by Luca Cerizza and Gianfranco Maraniello (10 June – 20 July)
Berlin, Germany. II Berlin Biennale,
curated by Sasia Bos (20 April – 20 June)
Académie de France, Rome. La Folie de la Villa Médicis,
curated by Chiara Parisi (9 April – 23 July)
D.A.M.S., Università di Bologna, Italy. In Between. Le stanze della storia dell’arte,
curated by Mario Lupano (20 March)
2000 Casina Pompeiana, Naples. Pompeiorama. Che c’è di nuovo? 2
(17 December 2000 – 28 January 2001)
Fondazione Adriano Olivetti, Rome. Elisabetta Benassi, Frederico Del Prete, Matthais Müller,
curated by Bartolomeo Pietromarchi (12–29 December)
Galerie Michel Rein, Paris. Mes rendez-vous (2)
(7 December 2000 – 6 January 2001)
P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center, New York. Summer 2000 at P.S. 1: Special Projects,
curated by Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev and Klaus Biesenbach (12 August – 30 September)
Académie de France, Rome. La Ville, le Jardin, la Mémoire, in “La Folie”,
curated by Laurence Bossé, Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev, and Hans Ulrich Obrist
(22 June – 24 September)
Palazzo delle Papesse – Centro d’Arte Contemporanea, Siena, Italy. Videoplace,
curated by Salvatore Lacagnina (May)
Galería Juana de Aizpuru, Madrid. Juana y Juanita
(May)
1999 Istituto Aeronautico G. Galilei, Rome. Arte in classe. La leggerezza,
curated by Ludovico Pratesi (April)
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
2025 Lo Pinto, Luca. Elisabetta Benassi: Autoritratto al lavoro (Macerata: Quodlibet srl, 2025).
Exhibition catalogue.
2023 De Bellis, Vincenzo, and Rabottini Alessandro. Strata: Italian Art Since 2000.
The Words of the Artists (Milan/Dijon: Lenz Press/Les presses du Réel, 2023).
2022 Chiodi, Stefano. EMPIRE (Rome: Treccani, 2022). Exhibition catalogue.
2021 Colard, Sandrine. Congoville: A Black Flâneur’s Path through a Post-Colonial City
(Belgium: Leuven University Press, 2021). Exhibition catalogue.
Trevi, Emanuele. Elisabetta Benassi. Lady and Gentlemen (Milan: Nero Editions, 2021).
Exhibition catalogue.
2017 Annovi, Gian Maria. Pier Paolo Pasolini: performing authorship
(New York: Columbia University Press, 2017).
Baudelaire, Éric, and Lista Marcella. Après (Paris: Éditions du Centre Pompidou, 2017).
Exhibition catalogue.
Benassi, Elisabetta. It Starts with the Firing (Rome: Nero, 2017).
Di Martino, Bruno. Doppio schermo. Film e video d’artista in Italia dagli anni ’60 a oggi
(Imola: Manfredi Edizioni, 2017). Exhibition catalogue.
Hanru, Hou, and Luigia Lonardelli. Please Come Back. Il mondo come prigione?
(Rome: Mousse Publishing, 2017). Exhibition catalogue.
Müller, Vanessa Joan, Eleanor Taylor, and Aneta Zahradnik.
Mehr als nur Worte [Über das Poetische] / More Than Just Words [On the Poetic]
(Vienna: Kunsthalle Wien, 2017). Exhibition catalogue.
Serrao, Francesco. In-Giro / A-Round (Spoltore: Di Paolo Edizioni, 2017). Exhibition catalogue.
2016 Pébereau, Michel, Francesco Bonami, Emanuela Mazzonis, Pascal Neveux, and Ricardo Vazquez.
D’une Méditerranée, l’autre (Toulon: Département du Var, 2017). Exhibition catalogue.
2015 Benassi, Elisabetta. The King Leopold’s Soliloquy (Rome: Nero, 2015).
Benson Miller, Peter, Lyle Ashton Harris, and Robert Storr, eds. Nero su bianco
(Rome: Nero, 2015). Exhibition catalogue.
Gregos, Katerina, and Vincent Meessen, eds. Personne et les autres
(Milan: Mousse Publishing, 2015). Exhibition catalogue.
2014 Merz, Beatrice, and Vecellio, Marianna. Intenzione manifesta. Il disegno in tutte le sue forme /
Manifest Intention. Drawing in all its forms (Mantova: Corraini Editions, 2014). Exhibition catalogue.
2013 Benassi, Elisabetta. The Dry Salvages (Rome: Nero, 2013).
Centonze, Maria, ed. Elisabetta Benassi | Voglio fare subito una mostra
(Turin: Fondazione Merz, 2013). Exhibition catalogue.
Pietromarchi, Bartolomeo, ed. vice versa (Milan: Mousse Publishing, 2013). Exhibition catalogue.
Turpin, Elfi. Smog a Los Angeles. Elisabetta Benassi (Altkirch: CRAC Alsace, 2013). Exhibition catalogue.
2012 David, Catherine. Mutatis Mutandis (Vienna, Wiener Secession, 2012). Exhibition catalogue.
Fransoni, Alessio, and Valbonesi, Ilaria. Silenzi in cui le cose si abbandonano / Silence where
things abandon themselves (Zagreb: Muzej Suvremene Umjetnosti, 2012). Exhibition catalogue.
Smerling, Walter, and Robert Fleck. ARTandPRESS. Kunst, Wahrheit, Wirklichkeit
(Cologne: Wienand Verlag, 2012). Exhibition catalogue.
2011 Benassi, Elisabetta. All I Remember (Rome: Nero, 2011).
Coen, Ester, and Francesca Romana Morelli.
Una memoria contemporanea – Dalla collezione di Bianca Attolico (London: Trolley Books, 2011).
Curiger, Bice, and Giovanni Carmine, eds. ILLUMInazioni/ILLUMInations
(Venice: Marsilio Editori, 2011). Exhibition catalogue.
Guercio, Gabriele. The Great Subtraction (Brussels: ASA Publisher, 2011).
2010 Cavasola, Roberto, ed. All I Remember (Rome: Nero, 2010). Exhibition catalogue.
2008 Bonacossa, Ilaria, Joseph Del Pesco, Fiona Parry, and Pelin Uran. Dai tempo al tempo
(Guarene d’Alba: Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, 2008). Exhibition catalogue.
Chiodi, Stefano. La bellezza difficile. Saggi e interventi sull’arte contemporanea
(Florence: Le Lettere, 2008).
Franke, Anselm, and Lotte De Voeght. Mimétisme
(Antwerp: Extra City Center for Contemporary Art, 2008). Exhibition catalogue.
2007 Belpoliti, Marco, Gianni Canova, and Stefano Chiodi, eds.
Annisettanta. Il decennio lungo del secolo breve (Geneva-Milan: Skira, 2007).
2006 Bonami, Francesco, Frisa, Maria Luisa and Tonchi, Stefano, eds.
Human Game. Vincitori e vinti (Milan: Charta Editions, 2006). Exhibition catalogue.
Chiodi, Stefano. Una sensibile differenza: Conversazioni con gli artisti italiani di oggi (Rome: Fazi, 2006).
2004 Lucas, Uliano, ed. Storia d’Italia. L’immagine fotografica 1945–2000 (Turin: Giulio Einaudi, 2004).
Maraniello, Gianfranco. Elisabetta Benassi (Milan: Electa, 2004). Exhibition catalogue.
2003 Christov-Bakargiev, Carolyn. Cream 3 (London: Phaidon, 2003).
Christov-Bakargiev, Carolyn. I Moderni /The Moderns (Milan: Skira, 2003). Exhibition catalogue.
2002 Benassi, Elisabetta. Elisabetta Benassi: Storyboard (You'll Never Walk Alone, Timecode)
(Paris: Onestar Press, 2002).
2000 Risaliti, Sergio, ed. Espresso. Art now in Italy (Milan: Electa, 2000).
REVIEWS
2023 Vukadin, Ana. “Inside the world’s oldest lithography store, printer to Giorgio de Chirico and Cy Twombly,”
FT Magazine, Financial Times (August 2023).
2020 Chiodi, Stefano. “Archivi eretici. Storia e immaginazione nel lavoro di Elisabetta Benassi,”
Palinsesti, no. 9 (2020).
2019 Bria, Ginevra. “Elisabetta Benassi. Sottrarsi al tempo della produzione,” Domus (July 2019).
2017 Bordignon, Elena. “A brick is a brick is a brick… Elisabetta Benassi alla Collezione Maramotti,”
ATP Diary (May 2017).
Bottani, Silvia. “Elisabetta Benassi alla Collezione Maramotti di Reggio Emilia /
Sculpture as place (of memory),” Doppiozero (May 2017).
Cortellessa, Andrea. “Il morto vivente come artista visivo,” il manifesto – Alias Domenica (October 2017).
Cortellessa, Andrea. “Ghost in the Machine. Pasolini oltre il mito,” Le parole e le cose (October 2017).
Cortellessa, Andrea. “Letargo / Elisabetta Benassi. Alla ricerca del sonno perduto,” Doppiozero
(January 2017).
Herbert, Martin. “Around Town: Rome,” Frieze, issue 187 (May 2017).
Jansen, Charlotte. “Bricking It,” Elephant (May 2017).
McKever, Rosalind. “The contemporary vision of Collezione Maramotti,” Apollo (August 2017).
Perrella, Cristiana. “Elisabetta Benassi. Magazzino / Rome,” Flash Art, no. 331 (March 2017).
Steverlynck, Sam. “Elisabetta Benassi Hits the Brick At Max Mara,” DAMN∞ Magazine, no. 62 (May 2017).
Tozzi, Lucia. “In fuga dal mondo-prigione con Koolhaas e Superstudio,” Pagina99 (February 2017).
2015 Turpin, Elfi. “Gli spettri di Elisabetta Benassi,” Flash Art, no. 302 (May/June 2015).
Volpato, Elena. “Elisabetta Benassi,” Flash Art (September 2015).
2013 Cohen, Patricia. “A Collector Bets His Eye and His Gut,” The New York Times (December 2013).
Cortellessa, Andrea. “La pescatrice di stelle,” Alfabeta2, no. 31 (July/August 2013).
2011 Volpato, Elena. “Elisabetta Benassi – The Innocent abroad,” Flash Art, no. 296 (October 2011).
2010 Belpoliti, Marco. “Benassi, Cosa c’è sul retro della Storia,” La Stampa (7 June 2010).
Mecugni, Anna. “Elisabetta Benassi,” Art in America, no. 11 (December 2010).
2008 Benassi, Elisabetta, and Rä di Martino. “Two Way Monologue,” Nero Magazine, no. 15 (2008).
Casavecchia, Barbara. “Time is in our side,” Flash Art International, no. 260 (2008).
Lissoni, Andrea. “Elisabetta Benassi,” Work, no. 23 (2008).
2007 Alliez, Eric, and Giovanna Zapperi. “Multitudes icônes versus documenta magazine,”
Multitudes, no. 30 (2007).
Bruni, Lorenzo. “Elisabetta Benassi. Intervista a rovescio,” Flash Art, no. 262 (2007).
Cattelan, Maurizio in dialogue with Elisabetta Benassi.
“I professori vanno mangiati in salsa piccante,” Il Manifesto (March 2007).
Stocchi, Francesco. “Elisabetta Benassi,” Artforum (April 2007).
PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
21C Museum Hotel, Louisville, Kentucky
Antinori Art Project - Antinori nel Chianti Classico Collection, San Casciano in Val di Pesa, Florence
By Art Matters, Hangzhou, China
Castello di Rivoli, Turin
Collezione Antonio dalle Nogare, Bolzano, Italy
Collezione la Gaia, Busca, Italy
Collezione Maramotti, Reggio Emilia, Italy
Depart Foundation, Los Angeles
FNAC - Fond National d’Art Contemporain, Paris
Fondazione Giuliani, Rome
FRAC Provence – Cote d’Azur, Marseille
MAXXI - Museo nazionale delle arti del XXI secolo, Rome
Mercedes-Benz Art Collection, Stuttgart
Musée National d’art Moderne - Centre Pompidou, Paris
Museo d'Arte Moderna di Bologna, Italy
Museo Nazionale Romano, Italy
NC Arte, Bogotá
Nomas Foundation, Rome
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Pennsylvania
Unicredit Group Art Collection, Milan
PRIVATE COLLECTIONS
Suzanne Deal Booth Collection, Houston
William George Greig Collection, New York
Leonardo Katz Collection, Miami – Bogotá
Anthony Podesta Collection, Washington, DC