I moderni / The moderns

The term 'modern' — and all its derivatives such as 'modernity', 'modernization' or 'modernism' — has changed meanings so many times since its first usage in antiquity that it is impossible to define it accurately. Yet it is a term that continues to haunt us, and to be repeatedly used whenever there has been a consciousness of a new epoch being formed. The notion of 'modern' is generally associated with the art and culture from the mid‑nineteenth century to the 1960s. Obsolete during the last thirty years of postmodernism, it is again addressed in the work of a generation of contemporary artists who have grown up during the digital age. This catalogue explores the ways in which contemporary artists are engaging with modernism and modernity today. The exhibition 'I Moderni / The Moderns' was held at the Castello di Rivoli from April 16 till August 24, 2003.