Museum for Preventive Imagination is the program launched in 2020 by MACRO’s artistic director, Luca Lo Pinto: a single exhibition project designed to develop organically until February 16, 2025.
The title is inspired by the Office for Preventive Imagination project, established in 1973 by Carlo Maurizio Benveduti, Tullio Catalano, and Franco Falasca with the aim of producing an art capable of revolutionizing society. It serves as a manifesto for the attitude and identity that characterize the museum.
Museum for Preventive Imagination transformed MACRO into a performative space: a grand stage where situations, exhibitions, and projects with different spatial and temporal dimensions coexisted, aiming to engage the public with a program that was both accessible but not merely entertaining, comprehensible but not didactic.
A shared infrastructure that became a space for reciprocity, conviviality, and the questioning of the role of artistic production and its reception. The idea was to develop a flexible and interdisciplinary museum structure that placed artists and their ideas at the center. A museum conceived as a studio for the production of imaginaries, as opposed to a mere static exhibition space.
Museum for Preventive Imagination was conceived as an exhibition project spanning five years and intended to evolve organically on multiple levels. In this sense, MACRO was not a space designed to present a series of temporary exhibitions but rather a single triennial exhibition project that took shape like a puzzle assembled over time. Consequently, instead of hosting exhibitions, the museum became an exhibition itself—both a form and a site of production. It transitioned from a container to content, aiming to reduce the gap between the museum-as-actor and the audience-as-spectator.
The project was developed with the idea of the museum as a three-dimensional magazine, structured into sections that hosted diverse content. The various sections (Solo/Multi; Polyphony; Arrhythmic; In-Design; Bibliographic Studio; Chamber Music; Gymnasium; Retrofuture. Notes for a Collection) were designed to create a museum experience that was both fragmented and immersive. A polyphonic cultural center where an editorial structure was translated into a living form. Each visitor had the opportunity to navigate fluidly while also being tasked with finding connections among the various elements, focusing on the gaps between disciplines.
MUSEUM FOR PREVENTIVE IMAGINATION — EDITORIAL (17.07 – 27.09.2020)
LAWRENCE WEINER, TRACCE / TRACES (16 – 25.08.2020, SUPPLEMENT)
PHANOS KYRIACOU, at. this moment (15.10.2020 – 28.03.2021, SUPPLEMENT)
PLAYMEN: UN ALBUM. With the participation of Vega, Carlo Antonelli, Maria Luisa Frisa, Michele Masneri. With contributions by Fulvio Jacometti, Mauro Piccini, Pier Francesco Pingitore, Bruna Reali, Roberto Rocchi (03.02 – 30.05.2021, BIBLIOGRAPHIC OFFICE)
SIMONE CARELLA, Io poeto tu. With works by Rä di Martino, Anna Franceschini, Emiliano Maggi, the participation of Vega, Francesca Corona and Alessandra Vanzi, Andrea Cortellessa, Silvia Fanti and Giorgio Barberio Corsetti, Valerio Mattioli. With contributions by Ulisse Benedetti, Pippo Di Marca, Paolo Grassini, Rossella Or, Mario Romano, Fabio Sargentini, Marco Solari (03.02 – 06.06.2021, POLYPHONY)
BOY VEREECKEN, Back Matter. With works by Stéphane Barbier Bouvet, Daniel Dewar & Grégory Gicquel, Jana Euler, Ezio Gribaudo, Jos de Gruyter & Harald Thys, Annette Kelm, Marlie Mul, Peter Wächtler (03.02 – 13.06.2021, IN-DESIGN)
SOSHIRO MATSUBARA, Caresses, (03.02 – 13.06.2021, REHEARSAL)
NATHALIE DU PASQUIER, Campo di Marte (03.02 – 20.06.2021, SOLO / MULTI)
Wolfgang Stoerchle (1944–1976). Organized with Alice Dusapin (03.02 – 27.06.2021, ARRHYTHMICS)
(Editions) Mego 1995 – 2020 (03.02 – 06.10.2021, CHAMBER MUSIC)
RETROFUTURO. Notes for a Collection. With works by Federico Antonini, Monia Ben Hamouda, Riccardo Benassi, Ruth Beraha, Carola Bonfili, Costanza Candeloro, Ludovica Carbotta, Beatrice Celli, Giulia Cenci, Alessandro Cicoria, Gianluca Concialdi, Giulia Crispiani, Michela de Mattei, Giorgio Di Noto, Chiara Enzo, Roberto Fassone, Irene Fenara, Giorgia Garzilli, Diego Gualandris, Sara Leghissa, Lorenza Longhi, Eleonora Luccarini, Beatrice Marchi, Diego Marcon, Jim C. Nedd, Francis Offman, Real Madrid, SAGG NAPOLI, Parasite 2.0, Francesco Pedraglio, Margherita Raso, Gabriele Silli, Davide Stucchi and Ilaria Vinci. (03.02.2021 – 22.09.2024)
DARREN BADER, Bootlicker Suite (12.04 – 31.07.2021, SUPPLEMENT)
FRANCA SACCHI, Enstasi (10.06 – 19.09.2021, CHAMBER MUSIC)
Artists’ Library: 1989–2021. With Noah Barker, Éric Baudelaire, Pauline Curnier Jardin, Claudia de la Torre, Maria Eichhorn, Simone Fattal, Aaron Flint Jamison, David Horvitz, Tobias Kaspar, Giulio Paolini, Walid Raad, Georgia Sagri, Luca Trevisani. (15.06 – 05.09.2021, BIBLIOGRAPHIC OFFICE)
FRANCO MAZZUCCHELLI, Quadreria 2050 (from 22.06.2021, SUPPLEMENT)
FRIEDL KUBELKA VOM GRÖLLER, Songs of Experience. With works by Talia Chetrit, Philipp Fleischmann, Seiichi Furuya, Sophie Thun. With the participation of Eva Sangiorgi (22.06 – 10.10.2021, POLYPHONY)
REBA MAYBURY, Faster Than An Erection (02.07 – 12.09.2021, REHEARSAL)
JULIE PEETERS, Daybed. With the participation of RareBooksParis, BILL, Helen Van de Vloet, Le Cinéma Club OK-RM and others to come (08.07 – 24.10.2021, IN-DESIGN)
TONY COKES, This isn’t theory. This is history (15.07 – 20.10.2021, SOLO/MULTI)
MARIO DIACONO, Diaconia. Writing and Art (15.07 – 24.10.2021, ARRHYTHMICS)
ANNA-SOPHIE BERGER E TEAK RAMOS, You can have my brain, (28.09.2021 – 23.01.2022, REHEARSAL)
SUBLIME FREQUENCIES, The Extra Geography (28.09.2021 – 30.01.2022, CHAMBER MUSIC)
Fore-edge Painting. With Tauba Auerbach, Kerstin Brätsch, Cansu Çakar, Enzo Cucchi, Camille Henrot, Victor Man, Andrea Salvino, Andro Wekua. MACRO and Bibliotheca Hertziana. (28.09.2021 – 01.02.2022, BIBLIOGRAPHIC OFFICE)
SALVO, Autoritratto come Salvo (27.10.2021 – 27.02.2022, POLYPHONY)
VIER5, WIN A NEW CAR (03.11.2021 – 06.02.2022, IN-DESIGN)
PATRIZIA VICINELLI, Chi ha paura di Patrizia Vicinelli (11.11.2021 – 27.02.2022, ARRHYTHMICS)
JASON DODGE, Cut a Door in the Wolf (11.11.2021 – 16.03.2022, SOLO / MULTI)
NICOLÁS GUAGNINI, Farces and Tirades (10.02 – 22.05.2022, REHEARSAL)
Remoria. Organized with Valerio Mattioli. With contributions by Akoi 1 and VEGA with Michele Zanotti. With the participation of DOM, Claudio Kulesko, Nicola Lagioia, Annalisa Metta (10.02 – 22.05.2022, BIBLIOGRAPHIC OFFICE)
PRESTO!? Four Musical Procedures. Featuring James Ferraro, Florian Hecker, Chal Ravens, Timur Tokdemir (10.02 – 12.06.2022, CHAMBER MUSIC)
GODA BUDVYTYTĖ, touch, colour and fold. With Bernardo José de Souza, ĒTER, Rasa Juškevičiūtė, Ula Sickle (24.02 – 22.05.2022, IN-DESIGN)
CATHY JOSEFOWITZ, The Thinking Body. Organized with Elise Lammer (16.03 – 19.06.2022, ARRHYTHMICS)
LEE SCRATCH PERRY, THE ORBZERVER. With works by Rashiyah Elanga, Invernomuto, Ishion Hutchinson, Rammellzee, Zadie Xa (16.03 – 04.09.2022, POLYPHONY)
CINZIA RUGGERI, Cinzia says… (14.04 – 28.08.2022, SOLO / MULTI)
JULIA BORN, All Capitals (21.06 – 09.10.2022, IN-DESIGN)
Richard Serra: Animal habitats live and stuffed… Roma, La Salita, 1966 (21.06 – 09.10.2022, BIBLIOGRAPHIC OFFICE)
EGISTO MACCHI, Espressionismo sociale (21.06 – 23.10.2022, CHAMBER MUSIC)
EVA BARTO, Sharp Smile (21.06 – 06.11.2022, REHEARSAL)
LISA PONTI, Il disegno di una mostra (07.07 – 30.10.2022, ARRHYTHMICS)
DIEGO PERRONE, Pendio piovoso frusta la lingua (29.09.2022 – 19.03.2023, SOLO / MULTI)
readymades belong to everyone ®, Philippe Thomas declines his identity. With works by Claire Fontaine, Christopher D’Arcangelo and The Offices of Fend, Fitzgibbon, Holzer, Nadin, Prince and Winters (28.10.2022 – 26.02.2023, POLYPHONY)
ÅBÄKE, Deep Publishing (28.10.2022 – 05.03.2023, IN-DESIGN)
Hanuman Books 1986 – 1993. With a contribution by Francesco Clemente and Raymond Foye (28.10.2022 -05.03.2023, BIBLIOGRAPHIC OFFICE)
FATIMA AL QADIRI, Isekai (28.10.2022 – 12.03.2023, CHAMBER MUSIC)
Pier Paolo Pasolini and Ezra Pound. A Pact. Curated by Giuseppe Garrera. With contributions by Allison Grimaldi Donahue, Olaf Nicolai, Luca Vitone (24.11.2022 – 19.02.2023, ARRHYTHMICS)
ROBERT SMITHSON, Rome is still falling, (24.11.2022 – 21.05.2023, REHEARSAL)
Hervé Guibert: This and More, Curated by Anthony Huberman, (09.03 – 21.05.2023, ARRHYTHMICS)
STUDIO TEMP, Tempus Fugit, (17.03 – 27.08.2023, IN-DESIGN)
LEONARD KOREN, What why WET?, (17.03 – 27.08.2023, BIBLIOGRAPHIC OFFICE)
JOCHEN KLEIN, After The Light. With works by Julie Ault, Thomas Eggerer, Ull Hohn, Wolfgang Tillmans, Amelie von Wulffen (17.03 – 27.08.2023, POLYPHONY)
PAULINE OLIVEROS, Beethoven Was a Lesbian (17.03 – 10.09.2023, CHAMBER MUSIC)
In Prima Persona Plurale. With Gina Beavers, Alexandra Bircken, Corrado Cagli, Judy Chicago, Enzo Cucchi, Jimmy DeSana, Eliza Douglas, Wayland Flowers, Massimo Grimaldi, Duane Hanson, Mark Leckey, Nancy Lupo, Tala Madani, John Miller, Hudson Mohawke, Paul Mpagi Sepuya, Ulrike Ottinger, Lucia Pica, Francisco Sierra, Erik Thys, Gianfilippo Usellini and other apparitions (27.04 – 24.09.2023, SOLO / MULTI)
Vicolo della Penitenza 11/A. Curated by Janice Guy. Con Michel Auder, Sarah Charlesworth, DW Fitzpatrick, Gary Hume, On Kawara, Julian Lethbridge, Sarah Lucas, Reinhard Mucha, Richard Prince, Cindy Sherman, Thomas Struth, Meyer Vaisman, Lawrence Weiner, Franz West e Christopher Wool (09.06 – 29.10.2023, ARRHYTHMICS)
Daniel Dewar & Grégory Gicquel, The Bidet and the Jar (09.06 – 29.10.2023, REHEARSAL)
EXPERIMENTAL JETSET, AUTONOMIARTEPOVERARCHIZOOMEMPHISUPERSTUDIOPERAISMO (20.09.2023 - 18.02.2024, IN-DESIGN)
ALEXANDER BRODSKY, Profondità di campo (20.09.2023 – 18.02.2024, POLYPHONY)
ALVIN CURRAN, Hear Alvin Here (20.09.2023 - 17.03.2024, CHAMBER MUSIC)
Barrikadenwetter. Atti visivi dell’insurrezione. Curated by the Arsenale Institute, Venice (20.09.2023 – 18.02.2024, BIBLIOGRAPHIC OFFICE)
EMILIO PRINI, …E Prini (27.10.2023 – 01.04.2024, SOLO/MULTI)
PAULINE CURNIER JARDIN & FEEL GOOD COOPERATIVE, Triviale (09.02 – 12.05.2024, REHEARSAL)
BLESS, 25 Years of Always Stress with BLESS (09.02 – 12.05.2024, ARRHYTHMICS)
ALVA NOTO, HYbr:ID (21.03 – 25.08.2024, CHAMBER MUSIC)
LUIGI SERAFINI, Una casa ontologica (21.03 – 25.08.2024, BIBLIOGRAPHIC OFFICE)
LAURA GRISI, Cosmogonie. With works by Leonor Antunes, Nancy Holt and Liliane Lijn (21.03 – 25.08.2024, POLYPHONY)
STEFANO TAMBURINI, Accelerazione (21.03 – 25.08.2024, IN-DESIGN)
MARCIA HAFIF, Roma 1961-1969 (30.05 – 25.08.2024, REHEARSAL)
PATRIZIA CAVALLI, Il sospetto del paradiso. With a photographic installation by Lorenzo Castore (30.05 – 25.08.2024, ARRHYTHMICS)
ELISABETTA BENASSI, Autoritratto al lavoro (09.05 – 25.08.2024, SOLO/MULTI)
Post Scriptum. A museum forgotten by heart. Tolia Astakhishvili (featuring Thea Djordjadze, Heike Gallmeier, Dylan Peirce), Absalon, Vincenzo Agnetti, Maurizio Altieri, Alex Bag, Beatrice Bonino, Victor Cavallo, Francesca Cefis, Alassan Diawara, Buck Ellison, Luciano Fabro, Hamishi Farah, Simone Forti, Pippa Garner, Alberto Garutti, Isa Genzken, Lenard Giller, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Adam Gordon, Pierre Guyotat, Sohrab Hura, Thomas Hutton, Allan Kaprow, KUKII (aka Lafawndah), Rosemary Mayer, Sandra Mujinga, Charlemagne Palestine, Paolo Pallucco & Mireille Rivier, Lorenzo Silvestri, Diane Simpson, Lukas Wassmann, Gillian Wearing, Issy Wood. (04.10.2024 - 16.02.2025)