Ensemble _2026

THE BANK Foundation ETS – Institute for Studies on Contemporary Painting presents Ensemble_2026. A Biennial Observatory of Emerging Painting in Italy, on view at its headquarters in Bassano del Grappa (Vicenza) from May 24 to September 30, 2026. This inaugural edition of the exhibition project is dedicated to monitoring and promoting a new generation of painters under the age of 40 working throughout Italy.

Curated by Cesare Biasini Selvaggi, the exhibition aims to explore and present to the public the complexity and vitality of contemporary painting practices across the country. Bringing together one hundred artists, it highlights a wide range of approaches that engage, directly or indirectly, with issues related to the pictorial medium, meta-painting, and its expansion into the realms of installation, video art, and performance, as well as with the ongoing dialogue between figuration and abstraction.

The title of the exhibition is a formal reference to collectivity and asserts the “right to the Ensemble,” one of the aesthetic principles championed by the artistic group that founded the Salon d’Automne in Paris. According to this vision, artworks should be experienced as part of a vibrant ecosystem that privileges the cohesion of the collective voice over individual virtuosity. Much like a musical ensemble, where distinct identities converge to create a richer and more comprehensive harmony, the exhibition at THE BANK Foundation ETS brings together the voices of one hundred painters in a collective visual impact composed of signs, gazes, and material presence. This polyphony transforms the exhibition into a montage of perspectives, viewpoints, and possible reinterpretations of the contemporary imaginary.

«The works on display present painting both as an object and as a practice capable of re-establishing classical models of representation and narrative through a range of approaches, experiments, and explorations aimed at redefining traditional genres—portraiture, landscape, and still life. This process also unfolds through the appropriation of visual imaginaries drawn from diverse fields, from literature and dance to cinema, music videos, and digital animation», states Cesare Biasini Selvaggi, curator of the exhibition and Secretary General of THE BANK Foundation ETS.

«Ensemble_2026 was conceived as a recurring event precisely to document this ongoing journey: an observatory that, edition after edition, seeks to reveal the distinctive qualities of a language that changes from region to region, while also acknowledging the shared affinities and resonances that run throughout the Italian peninsula. By charting the transformations of Italian painting through the work of those who practice it today, the project contributes to the cultural development of the local area and strengthens the role of Bassano del Grappa as an active centre for contemporary artistic research», states Antonio Menon, President of THE BANK Foundation ETS.

Through the perspectives of the one hundred selected artists, a more intimate geography of Italy emerges: a mapping that moves beyond mere regional classification, transforming the painted surface into a topography of vision capable of capturing and expressing the atmospheres and tensions that shape the peninsula.

The exhibition will open on Saturday, May 23, at 6:00 PM. It will be open to the public on Saturdays and Sundays from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM, or by appointment. Summer closure: July 20–September 6, inclusive. Free admission.