Creating impact banking
The Agrati brothers: an extraordinary artistic legacy
An exhibition of works collected by renowned industrialists and collectors Luigi and Peppino Agrati is on public display for the first time as Intesa Sanpaolo’s Gallerie d’Italia unveils Art as a Revelation – a window on one of contemporary art’s most exciting private collections.
03/08/2018
The wet rag reborn as a masterpiece
The Restituzioni project has restored 1,300 cultural treasures to their former artistic glory over three decades. They include a 17th century altarpiece stolen by thieves and abandoned in a wood
28/06/2018
How Italy and New York shaped banking
The story unfolds in the archives of Intesa Sanpaolo
10/04/2018
Paolo Scheggi: star of the 1960s now shining brightly
There’s real depth to the work of an Italian artist who used layered canvases pierced with holes to create a startling hybrid between painting and sculpture. Alastair Smart explores his sudden popularity
27/03/2018
Giosetta Fioroni: Italian Pop art’s silver surfer
Now in her eighties, the only female member of the School of Piazza del Popolo is riding a wave of popularity. The cool, chromatic restraint of her canvases, characterised by the use of silver enamel paint, makes her work appear more contemporary than ever – and auction prices are on the rise
27/02/2018
Mapping Italy’s banking history
Intesa Sanpaolo’s interactive guide to its roots – a World Map – tells us much about the past of finance and its future
01/02/2018
Grisha Bruskin: a 20th-century Russian “icon”
When the Iron Curtain fell it revealed a whole generation of contemporary Soviet artists. One of the greatest is the subject of a new exhibition at the Palazzo Leoni Montanari in Gallerie d’Italia in Vicenza
24/01/2018
Mimmo Rotella: the poster boy of Italian Pop art
Ripping posters from city walls, Mimmo Rotella created a new form of art. It’s now highly valuable
12/12/2017
Art on tour
Six stunning vedute from Intesa Sanpaolo’s collection – including a Canaletto – are on show in Zagreb and Belgrade. It’s all to help promote cultural relations. “Intesa Sanpaolo operates in countries rich in culture and heritage and believes that cultural activities are a way to foster friendship across communities” – Gian Maria Gros-Pietro, Chairman of […]
23/10/2017
Art can paint a picture of how the world sees your business
Italian bank Intesa Sanpaolo is determined to share its extensive collection of masterpieces with the communities where it works.
15/09/2017
The plastic ocean: how to profit and help fish
The switch to a circular economy – based on reuse and regeneration – can’t come fast enough for forward-looking business leaders.
15/09/2017
Roberto Matta: forgotten hero of Surrealism
His work influenced the likes of Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning, yet the Latin-American painter remains relatively unknown. Now there are signs that his reputation is slowly on the up
01/08/2017
Caravaggio plays Naples
Intesa Sanpaolo’s art loan programme with great galleries around the world brings a musical masterpiece home
13/06/2017
What goes around comes around…
…which is why we need to adopt a circular economy fast
06/06/2017
Perspectives on the past
Official archives of the Intesa Sanpaolo group throw light on a century of Italian banking history – and have an important role to play in preserving the country’s cultural heritage
30/05/2017
A black mark for modern art
Deletion is the key technique of ‘visual poetry’ by Emilio Isgrò
05/05/2017
Securing a sustainable future
Intesa Sanpaolo is widely recognised as one of the most sustainable companies in the world. Elena Flor, Head of Corporate Social Responsibility, tells Sophy Buckley what it has been doing to achieve such status
04/04/2017
Crafting the future through preserving Egypt’s traditional skills
An innovative programme from ALEXBANK is helping Egypt’s skilled craftsmen preserve their heritage and boost the economy
15/03/2017
Plastic sea: how to help fish and make a profit
07/03/2017
Caravaggio, down-and-dirty genius
‘St Ursula’ shows Caravaggio at his most autobiographical
17/01/2017
Was Canaletto’s nephew the better painter?
The turbulent relationship between two great Venetian painters
23/12/2016
Investing in Slovakia’s cultural future
How the Mal’ba art contest shapes artistic heritage
07/10/2016
Futurism to Arte Povera: Italy’s quest for a modern artistic identity
Utterly different movements define the 20th century – one looking forward, the other harking to the past
07/10/2016
Italian Pop art: ripe for rediscovery
After being ignored for decades, Italian Pop artists – such as Enrico Baj and Giosetta Fioroni – are gaining recognition outside their homeland. Their work, says Alastair Smart, exemplifies the cultural confidence of the Sixties
30/08/2016
A nation in profile
The Italian artist Luciano Fabro produced 40 sculptures in the boot-like shape of his homeland, several examples of which belong to Intesa Sanpaolo. But, asks Alastair Smart, was he making a political statement?
23/08/2016
Piero Manzoni: trick or treat?
The Italian is notorious for his Merda d’Artista – a series of 90 cans of his own excrement. A satire on the pretensions of the art world or the final word in self-expression? In trying to decide, Alastair Smart looks at two important works
28/06/2016
Building a new relationship between bank and community
At a time when the state is retreating from providing services such as elderly care, not-for-profit organisations are stepping in to fill the gap. Giulia Rhodes hears from the chief executive of Banca Prossima how the bank is meeting the unique needs of the third sector.
29/04/2016
To infinity and beyond
As the founder of Spatialism, Lucio Fontana would boldly go where no artist had gone before. Critic and TV presenter Alastair Sooke delves into the holes and cuts that characterise the Italian’s work.
26/04/2016
Alberto Burri: a stitch in time
An Italian abstract artist is finally receiving the recognition he deserves a century after his birth. Alastair Smart assesses the legacy of Alberto Burri, several of whose works are owned by Intesa Sanpaolo.
19/04/2016
Saving the treasure of the past: now and forever
From ancient statues and medieval altarpieces to 19th-century paintings and theatrical costumes. Silvia Foschi, co-ordinator of Intesa Sanpaolo’s Restoration Programme, tells Giulia Rhodes why the private sector must help shoulder the cost of preserving Italy’s artistic inheritance
01/04/2016
The circular economy: lessons from a round-the-world record breaker
With the world’s resources under pressure, the global economy needs an urgent change of focus. Giulia Rhodes hears why Intesa Sanpaolo, partner in the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, is committed to a circular economy.
08/03/2016
The home and soul of Italy
The renovation of author Alessandro Manzoni’s house in Milan – funded by Intesa Sanpaolo – is more than an exercise in architectural heritage. It is also a celebration of the man who gave Italian unification a literary voice. Robert Galbraith explains why the project matters.
02/02/2016
Francesco Hayez: painter hero of Italian Romanticism
A new exhibition in Milan, part of Intesa Sanpaolo’s cultural heritage programme, focuses on the creator of The Kiss and his role as “art’s great idealist of national thought”. Alastair Smart explains why the work continues to be central to Italian history.
12/01/2016
La Scala – Still “the drawing room of Milan”
As La Scala opens the doors for its new season, the opera house remains, after more than 200 years, the city’s hottest ticket, thanks in part to sponsors such as Intesa Sanpaolo. Giulia Rhodes finds out why
22/12/2015
When less is more
An initiative to scrap paper that saves money and speeds up service has resulted in an important industry award for Intesa Sanpaolo, writes Caroline Dix
11/12/2015
Intesa’s Turin tower is named one of the 10 most environmentally friendly new buildings in the world
Numerous technologies reduce the 38-storey tower’s carbon footprint. Moreover, it is a public amenity as well as the bank’s offices, says Giulia Rhodes.
05/01/2015