Vittoria Matarrese new director of the Magasin in Grenoble

Vittoria Matarrese has been appointed as the new director of the Magasin, the National Center for Contemporary Art in Grenoble. The Italian architect and curator, who previously held positions at the Villa Medici in Rome, the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, and the Bally Foundation in Lugano, and most recently led the first Art Week Riyadh, succeeds Céline Kopp. Her appointment comes as the institution seeks a new direction after a prolonged period of crisis.

The Magasin, a pioneering French art center founded in the late 1980s, has faced significant instability since the 2000s, with frequent leadership changes, long renovation closures, and persistent social conflict. Kopp's tenure, which began in 2022, was marked by a successful reopening and a multidisciplinary program but also by internal strife, staff departures, and tensions with governance bodies. Matarrese's international profile and experience in programming and institutional leadership are seen as crucial for steering the center through its current challenges, even as it holds the national recognition of being labeled a Centre d'art contemporain d'intérêt national (CACIN).