EXHIBIT: BORSE NERE / Contenere e Continuare

An event honoring Florentine artist Elena Salvini Pierallini (1934–2024) and her influential Borse Nere, or “Black Bags,” artistic initiative.

Tuesday, September 22, 2026 at 5,30 p.m.

One of Pierallini’s most successful projects, Borse Nere brought together Florence’s artistic community through events centered on creativity, collaboration, and dialogue. For the original initiative, Pierallini created incomplete Libri in Piedi (“Standing Books”), placing each inside a large black bag symbolizing the subconscious. She then gave the books and bags to other artists, inviting them to fill them with whatever they wished. The artists later gathered in Florence to publicly share their completed books and the objects and inspirations drawn from their “black bags.”

For this continuation of the project, Elena’s daughters, Sibilla and Beatrice Pierallini, have donated eight incomplete art books from the ESP Archive to contemporary artists, allowing the artistic dialogue begun by their mother decades ago to continue. These contemporary artists are joined by historic artists who participated in the original Borse Nere events, creating a connection between past and present.

Arstist are: Cristina Abati, Veronika Bromberg, Nadia Chekoufi, Gloria Cipriani, Fausto De Landro, ESP, Luciana Floris, Irena M Kongsuwan, Ipsilonpi, Andrea Marini, Marlène Mangold, Victor Rees, RILABEN, Sophie Robinson, Walter Romani, Elena Santoni, Rea Stavropoulos, Caterina Trombetti, Margherita Verdi

The event will be introduced by Silvia Landi, who will recall the first edition of Borse Nere, alongside Aldo Frangioni and Manuela Mancioppi. The public presentation of the participating artists will take place on September 22, 2026, from 5:30–7:00 p.m. at MAD Murate Art District in Florence, curated by the Cultural Association Il Palmerino and Calliope Arts Foundation in collaboration with MAD.