Palazzo Esposizioni hosts the exhibition “In umbra et luce” by Pierluigi Isola

Palazzo Esposizioni Roma is pleased to present “In umbra et luce” from 2 April to 3 May 2026, a major exhibition dedicated to the pictorial universe of Pierluigi Isola. The exhibition, promoted by the Department of Culture of Roma Capitale and Azienda Speciale Palaexpo, is curated by Barbara Jatta, Director of the Vatican Museums.

Pierluigi Isola, Cedars and Cup, 2016, oil on panel, 22 × 60 cm.

Pierluigi Isola’s painting unfolds within a liminal territory where precision of detail coexists with a rare emotional intensity. It is an artistic inquiry that evokes the reflections of James Hillman, who introduced the artist at the 54th Venice Biennale: in Isola’s works, Hillman recognized that “melancholic beauty” capable of holding the “slow gravity of time,” revealing an inner light that shines precisely beyond the boundaries of the human condition.

The exhibition itinerary is divided into several sections illustrating the principal subjects Pierluigi Isola has explored through his painting: from the ancestral landscapes of the Maremma to the parched, almost desert-like scenery of Basilicata, and on to still lifes with a metaphysical flavour, poised between an almost Flemish obsession with detail and the mastery of Morandi. Monumental trees also play a central role — immense eucalyptus trees and rows of pines rising like majestic vegetal propylea — alongside the artist’s iconic views of Rome.

In the latter, the artist captures a sharp, meridian light that dissolves the contours of buildings and domes, restoring to the Eternal City an unprecedented physiognomy, almost as if it were being named for the first time through light and shadow. One section of the exhibition is entirely devoted to works on paper, among which the artist’s latest essential exploration in the mixed-media series Deserts stands out.

The exhibition is further enriched by preparatory drawings and prints created for major commissions from the Vatican Apostolic Library and the Vatican Museums. This part of the exhibition offers deeper insight into the creative process behind the graphic work in all its stages: from conception to reconsideration, through to the final edition.

Born in 1958, the artist returns to Palazzo delle Esposizioni thirty years after his participation in the 12th Quadriennale d’Arte in 1996. In umbra et luce represents not only a celebration of his artistic maturity, but also a profound dialogue between the tradition of great Italian painting and a contemporary sensibility capable of probing the silence and light of places.