Milan’s contemporary art credentials further bolstered by arrival of Paris Internationale

Paris Internationale, the influential non-profit art fair, has announced its inaugural Milan edition featuring a lineup of 34 galleries. Scheduled to coincide with Milan Art Week, Miart, and the Salone del Mobile, the fair includes prominent participants such as Jocelyn Wolff, kaufmann repetto, and Sylvia Kouvali. The move signals a strategic expansion for the French organization into a city increasingly recognized for its intersection of art, design, and high-level production.

Italy purchases rare Caravaggio painting for $34.7 million.

Italy purchases rare Caravaggio painting for $34.7 million.

The Italian government has purchased Caravaggio's *Ecce Homo* for $34.7 million, preventing the 17th-century masterpiece from leaving the country. The painting, which depicts a bound Christ presented to the crowd, was sold by its private owners after its rediscovery and authentication in 2021. The state exercised its right of first refusal to match a sale agreed with an unnamed foreign buyer, securing the work for public ownership.

Richmond Acquires an 18th-Century Terracotta

Richmond s'enrichit d'une terre cuite du XVIIIe siècle

The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond has acquired a rare 18th-century terracotta sculpture by the French artist Jean-Baptiste Boudard. A winner of the Grand Prix de Sculpture in 1732, Boudard spent much of his career in Italy serving the court of Philip of Bourbon in Parma, which contributed to his relative obscurity in his native France despite his significant contributions to Roman and Parmese landmarks.

The recovery of the art market, collecting trends, and other analyses in the newly published report

La ripresa del mercato dell’arte, i trend del collezionismo e altre analisi nel nuovo report appena pubblicato

The global art market has returned to growth in 2025, recording a 4% increase compared to the previous year despite geopolitical tensions and financial uncertainty. According to the fourth edition of the "Collectors and the Value of Art in Italy 2026" report by Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking, buyers are increasingly shunning speculative assets like NFTs and ultra-contemporary art in favor of established categories. Significant growth was noted in Modern art, Impressionism, and Old Masters, signaling a flight to quality and historical stability.

The Italian art market is gaining momentum

Italy's contemporary art market is experiencing a surge in activity, marked by the arrival of international galleries like Thaddaeus Ropac in Milan and Hauser & Wirth's planned opening in Sicily. This coincides with major art events such as Paris Internationale launching in Milan alongside the local Miart fair.

Unknown Artist | New English Photographs (1984) | Available for Sale

An original exhibition poster from the 1984 Milan exhibition "Nuova Fotografia Inglese" (New English Photography) has been made available for sale. Produced by the renowned Italian publisher Mazzotta Editore in collaboration with the British Council, the offset lithograph features a striking black-and-white nude study by an unidentified photographer, designed with the bold graphic sensibilities characteristic of the pre-digital era.

Ajing Wang | Flower In A Bottle (2025) | Available for Sale

Contemporary Chinese artist Ajing Wang has released her 2025 work 'Flower In A Bottle' for sale through Blue Green Galleria. The painting, an oil on canvas, exemplifies Wang’s signature style of merging traditional Chinese xieyi ink painting techniques with Western oil painting to achieve a balance between abstraction and figuration. The work is part of her 'Bottle Flower Series' and is currently listed on the Artsy platform for $425.

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The Italian government has acquired a rare Caravaggio portrait for €30 million ($34.7 million), marking one of the state's most significant art purchases to date. The painting depicts Monsignor Maffeo Barberini, the future Pope Urban VIII, and was previously held in a private Florentine collection before being transferred to the permanent collection of the Palazzo Barberini in Rome.

Italy Acquires Caravaggio's Barberini Portrait

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The Italian Ministry of Culture has acquired a rare Caravaggio portrait of Maffeo Barberini, the future Pope Urban VIII, for €30 million ($35 million). The late 16th-century masterpiece, which had been hidden in a private collection for decades, will now reside permanently at Rome’s Palazzo Barberini. The acquisition follows a successful short-term loan and extensive technical analysis that confirmed the work's authenticity.

Caravaggio portrait of influential patron—and future Pope Urban VIII—purchased by Italy for €30m

The Italian government has acquired a rare Caravaggio portrait of Maffeo Barberini, the future Pope Urban VIII, for €30 million following a year of negotiations with private owners. The 17th-century masterpiece, which depicts one of the artist's most influential patrons, will join the permanent collection of the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica at Palazzo Barberini in Rome. It represents one of the largest sums ever paid by the Italian state for a single work of art.

Auctions of the week: ancient paintings, Modern art and the Orient

The global art market is entering a high-intensity period between March 5 and 11, 2026, with a dense schedule of auctions spanning Italy, London, Vienna, and Geneva. Major international houses including Christie’s, Sotheby’s, Phillips, and Bonhams are hosting marquee 20th and 21st-century art sales in London, while Italian houses like Finarte, Pandolfini, and Bertolami focus on Old Master paintings, design, and private estates. Notable single-owner collections, such as the Roger and Josette Vanthournout Collection and the estate of Antonio Crivellaro, are among the week's highlights.

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A double-sided panel painting by Renaissance master Antonello da Messina, titled 'Ecce Homo and Saint Jerome in the Desert,' was withdrawn from Sotheby's Old Masters auction just days before its scheduled sale. The Italian Ministry of Culture purchased the work directly for $14.9 million, preventing it from going to public auction where it was estimated to fetch $10–15 million.

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Sotheby's is launching its inaugural Old Masters Week at its new Breuer building location in New York with a special exhibition of works heading to auction. The centerpiece is the 'cimasa' (top panel) of Pietro Perugino's 'Decemviri Altarpiece' (1495), on an exceptional loan from Italy's National Gallery of Umbria and traveling outside Italy for the first time. After its display at Sotheby's, the panel will be exhibited at the Morgan Library and Museum alongside Giovanni Bellini's newly restored 'Pietà' (c. 1470), which is also making its U.S. debut.