BOLOGNA.- Arte Fiera 2015—Bologna from 23 to 26 January 2015—confirms the upward trend that began in 2013, and resolutely reclaims its role as the main and most comprehensive Italian modern and contemporary art show: the only one organized in official partnership with the Italian Association of Modern and Contemporary Art Galleries. The number of exhibiting galleries rises again this year: from 126 in 2013, and 172 in 2014, to 185 galleries registered two months before the start of the 2015 show—an increase of 8% in relation to 2014 and 47% over the last two years; 210 exhibitors in total, presenting over 2,000 works by more than 1,000 artists, from great masters to promising newcomers. Five sections: Main, Focus Est (East Europe and opens this year to Middle Eastern cultures), Photography, Solo Show, and New Proposals.

Arte Fiera’s decision to showcase the best Italian art of the last century is confirmed in this edition’s Main Section, in which over 40 galleries will exhibit more than 200 works by contemporary Italian artists, who have achieved stunning results this year on the international markets: Lucio Fontana, Piero Manzoni, Enrico Castellani, Alighiero Boetti, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Alberto Burri, Dadamaino, Gianni Colombo, Pier Paolo Calzolari, Agostino Bonalumi, Paolo Scheggi, and Turi Simeti.

Collectors will be directly involved in a special exhibition comprising works loaned by over 60 collectors, titled Too early, too late, will be curated by Marco Scotini, who is also in charge of the Focus Est section of the show, and hosted at Bologna's Pinacoteca Nazionale. This exhibition will remain open until 12 April 2015. Arte Fiera 2015 also pays special attention to the relationship between galleries and collectors, dedicating a new area to "Protagonists," i.e. the galleries that have played a key role in the development of Italian art. The curatorial approach will be completed by the programme of Arte Fiera Conversations, presenting nine meetings of great international importance dedicated to the issues of the market and public and private investment in art, focusing in particular on the experiences of emerging markets of Asia and the Middle East.

Another outstanding event will be the national premiere of the film Mr. Turner, about the great British master, in the presence of director Mike Leigh.