Galleria Lia Rumma

Lia Rumma began collecting contemporary art in the 1960s in Salerno with her husband, Marcello, and in 1968, together with critic Germano Celant, they organized an exhibition in Amalfi now regarded as one of the founding moments of Arte Povera. After Marcello's death in 1970, Lia Rumma moved to Naples and opened her own gallery there in 1971, inaugurating it with a solo exhibition by the young American Conceptual artist Joseph Kosuth. Over the following decades, the gallery became known for identifying and showing emerging movements early -- Arte Povera, Minimal Art, Land Art and Conceptual Art -- before extending into photography, painting and performance, working with artists including Giovanni Anselmo, Alberto Burri, Gino De Dominicis, Donald Judd, William Kentridge, Anselm Kiefer and Robert Longo. In 1999, Lia Rumma opened a second space in Milan, inaugurated with a solo show by Enrico Castellani; a larger three-level Milan space followed in 2010, opened with an exhibition by Ettore Spalletti. The gallery's roster has also included Marina Abramovic, Vanessa Beecroft, Victor Burgin, Gary Hill, Alfredo Jaar and Joseph Kosuth. Lia Rumma received a career achievement award in 2024 marking more than four decades in the gallery business.