Broken: The Power of the Fragment. The Beauty of the Incomplete at Palazzo Strozzi

A sculpture without arms, a face marked by time, a fragment of marble that has survived destruction. We are accustomed to looking at these works and trying to imagine what is missing, as though their beauty depended on our ability to reconstruct their original form. But what if the missing piece were the very thing that told the most interesting story?

This question lies at the heart of Broken: The Power of the Fragment, a major exhibition at Palazzo Strozzi in Florence, running from September 25, 2026, through January 24, 2027.

Organized by Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi in collaboration with the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., the exhibition brings together more than 80 artworks and artifacts from international museums and collections, spanning thousands of years of sculptural history, from antiquity to contemporary art.

 

When a Fragment Becomes a Work of Art

Throughout art history, a fragment has often been regarded as what remains of something that was once complete. Part of a statue, a head separated from its body, an architectural element that survived the disappearance of the original building.

Yet what survives can acquire a meaning independent of the work to which it once belonged.

The many ancient Greek and Roman sculptures that have reached us without arms or other elements are a perfect example. Today, we admire them in museums as masterpieces, often forgetting that their present condition is the result of centuries of transformation, damage, and restoration.

Broken invites visitors to shift their perspective. Rather than focusing exclusively on what has been lost, the exhibition encourages us to consider what the fragment still has to tell.

A break may result from the passage of time, an accident, or deliberate destruction. In other cases, the artist intentionally chooses incompleteness as a form of artistic expression.

The fragment thus becomes both a historical record and a source of imagination, capable of inspiring new interpretations and meanings.

 

From Ancient Egypt to Michelangelo and Contemporary Art

The exhibition takes visitors across remarkably different periods and cultures, bringing together works that are rarely seen side by side.

The civilizations of ancient Egypt, Etruria, Greece, and Rome are presented alongside objects from premodern cultures in what are now Mexico, Mali, Peru, and Cambodia.

Works associated with some of art history's greatest figures, including Giovanni Pisano, Michelangelo, and Auguste Rodin, appear alongside creations by contemporary artists such as Louise Bourgeois, Huma Bhabha, Robert Gober, Francesco Vezzoli, and Danh Vo.

This dialogue reveals how the meaning of the fragment has evolved over time.

While incompleteness in ancient sculpture is often the result of historical events, in contemporary art it can become a deliberate artistic choice, used to explore themes such as identity, memory, the human body, and transformation.

The more than 80 works on display come from major international institutions, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Louvre in Paris, the British Museum in London, and the Museo Nacional de Antropología in Mexico City.

 

The Scars of History: From Destruction to Memory

One of the exhibition's most compelling aspects is its exploration of the relationship between works of art and the historical events that have altered their appearance.

Wars, revolutions, acts of vandalism, destruction driven by religious or political motives, and natural disasters have left lasting marks on the artistic heritage of many civilizations.

In some cases, statues were deliberately damaged to erase the memory of a particular figure or political power. In others, only certain fragments survived, rediscovered centuries later in settings entirely different from their original contexts.

Florence, too, knows the significance of these scars. Among the events referenced in the exhibition is the devastating flood of November 4, 1966, whose 60th anniversary is commemorated this year. The disaster severely damaged numerous works of art, marking the beginning of a long process of recovery and restoration.

The connection between the exhibition and the city's history offers another opportunity for reflection: a damaged surface can preserve not only the memory of the artwork itself, but also that of the people and events that shaped its fate.

 

Mark Manders and the Illusion of an Ancient Sculpture

The Broken experience extends into Palazzo Strozzi's Renaissance courtyard, where an installation by Dutch-Belgian artist Mark Manders has been created.

At the center of the installation is Tilted Head, a large sculptural head that appears fragile and unfinished, almost as though it were modeled in clay.

At first glance, it might resemble an artifact from a lost civilization. In reality, it is a contemporary work that plays with this very ambiguity, challenging the way we distinguish between ancient and modern, complete and seemingly unfinished.

The installation serves as an ideal introduction to the exhibition, inviting visitors to question their own expectations before even entering the galleries.

 

A Cultural Experience Just Steps from Antica Torre Tornabuoni

Located in the heart of Florence's historic center, Palazzo Strozzi is one of the city's leading venues for major art exhibitions.

Its location makes it especially convenient for guests staying at Antica Torre Tornabuoni, just a few steps from the Renaissance palace.

A short walk along Via de' Tornabuoni leads directly to the exhibition while offering a glimpse of one of Florence's most fascinating qualities: the constant presence of history in everyday life.

From medieval buildings and Renaissance palaces to exhibitions featuring art from every era, the city offers countless opportunities to discover how the past and present continue to interact.

With Broken: The Power of the Fragment, even what appears incomplete becomes a starting point for exploring art history from a different perspective.

 

Visitor Information

Exhibition: Broken: The Power of the Fragment

Location: Palazzo Strozzi, Florence

Dates: September 25, 2026 – January 24, 2027

Opening hours: Daily, 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM; Thursdays until 11:00 PM.

Admission: Tickets required.

For more information and tickets: www.palazzostrozzi.org