by InTrieste
A city better known for its understated elegance than for blockbuster exhibitions is stepping into the international spotlight. Beginning this week, Casa Cavazzini, Udine’s Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, is hosting Impressionism and Modernity, a major exhibition that brings 84 masterpieces from Switzerland’s Kunst Museum Winterthur to northeastern Italy.
On view through Aug. 30, 2026, the exhibition traces the birth of modern art across more than half a century, from the soft light of Impressionism to the bold experiments of abstraction and Surrealism. Works by Claude Monet and Vincent van Gogh anchor the early chapters, while later rooms feature Pablo Picasso, Wassily Kandinsky, René Magritte and other artists who reshaped European art between the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The show marks the first time a substantial selection from the Winterthur collection—one of Europe’s most important repositories of modern art—has been presented in Friuli Venezia Giulia. Installed across Casa Cavazzini’s galleries in the historic center of Udine, the exhibition positions the city as an unexpected stop on the international art circuit.
Organizers say the exhibition has already drawn interest from abroad, including visitors from the United States, reflecting a growing appetite for high-profile cultural destinations beyond Europe’s traditional capitals. For Udine, Impressionism and Modernity is both a cultural milestone and a statement of intent: that world-class art can flourish far from the usual museum map.
Impressionism and Modernity is on view at Casa Cavazzini in Udine from Jan. 30 through Aug. 30, 2026. The exhibition is open Tuesday to Thursday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Friday to Sunday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. The museum is closed on Mondays, with special openings on select holidays.
