From October 27, 2025 to March 8, 2026, the max museum of Chiasso hosts a large exhibition dedicated to Sophia Loren, an icon of world cinema and a timeless symbol of beauty and determination.
Edited by Francesco Casetti, Angela Madesani e Nicoletta Ossanna Cavadini, the exhibition – entitled “Sophia Loren: The Myth of Beauty Drawn with Light” – presents approximately two hundred photographs, mostly vintage, which tell the story of a woman capable of transforming her image into art.
The exhibition is part of the path that the museum cyclically dedicates to photography and is linked to the main theme of the cultural season of the Chiasso Cultural Center, the pulchritudo: a beauty that is not only aesthetic, but also internal, rooted in experience and the soul.
A visual journey through sixty years of history
The exhibition route unfolds in seven sections Naples of the origins, Screenplays, Elegance, Art, Public meetings, Family e Beauty icon – and takes the visitor on a journey that intertwines cinematic fiction and everyday reality.
The photographs immortalize Loren on the set and in her private life, portrayed by great masters such as Richard Avedon, Elliott Erwitt, David Seymour, Ugo Mulas, Pierluigi Praturlon, Gianni Berengo Gardin e Tazio Secchiaroli, the latter author of a nucleus of 72 vintage shots at the center of the curatorial project.
Secchiaroli, defined as the diva's "visual biographer," followed her for twenty years, documenting her public and private life with a gaze that was both discreet and profound.
Through the light of her photographers, Sophia Loren appears not only as an actress, but as a woman, mother, artist, and figure who has managed to self-determine in the world of entertainment.
Sophia Loren's beauty as a harmony between body and spirit
The concept of pulchritudo – the leitmotif of the Chiasso exhibition season – finds a perfect translation in the figure of Sophia Loren: hers is a beauty that combines elegance and strength, sensuality and intelligence, spontaneity and control.
Each image becomes a piece of this visual narrative, a dialogue between the photographer's eye and the protagonist's awareness in constructing her own public image.
The exhibition also features photographs that tell the story of the bond between Loren and two icons of Italian fashion: Salvatore Ferragamo e Giorgio Armani, represented by a selection of footwear and design objects from the Ferragamo Museum in Florence.
A diva between Italy and Switzerland
Born in Rome and raised in Pozzuoli, Sophia Loren chose the Switzerland, and in particular Geneva, as a place of residence. The exhibition emphasizes this dual cultural belonging, positioning itself as an ideal bridge between the two countries.
It is no coincidence that the exhibition enjoys the patronage of theItalian Embassy in Bern and Consulate General of Italy in Lugano, with the support of Department of Cultural Activities of the Municipality of Chiasso and Republic and Canton of Ticino – Swisslos Fund and various institutions and private sponsors.
After Chiasso, the exhibition Sophia Loren: the myth of beauty depicted with light will be hosted in three Italian cities: Milan (Adolfo Pini Foundation, March 12 – April 12, 2026), Bologna (Cirulli Foundation, May 7 – July 5, 2026) and Naples (Banco di Napoli Foundation, September 10 – October 31, 2026).
The event is accompanied by a bilingual catalogue (Italian-English) published by Silvana Editorial, with critical texts by scholars such as Angela Madesani, Francesco Casetti, Nicoletta Ossanna Cavadini, Giovanna Bertelli and Maria Canella, as well as a rich iconographic apparatus featuring all the works on display.
Beyond the exhibition: events, workshops and meetings
The max museum offers a extensive calendar of collateral events, including conferences, guided tours, educational workshops for children and adults, and a film festival dedicated to the “lady of Italian cinema”.
Among the main meetings are the public lecture by Angela Madesani (November 26, 2025) and the International conference "The myth of beauty in its contemporary form" (November 10, 2025).
There is no shortage of more informal initiatives, such as “At the table with Sophia Loren”, inspired by his famous recipe book In the kitchen with love, and creative activities designed for the little ones, such as the workshop “Beauty is an emotion”.
Information
Sophia Loren: the myth of beauty depicted with light
max museum, via Dante Alighieri 6, Chiasso (Switzerland)
Date: October 27, 2025 - March 8, 2026
Timetables: Tuesday – Sunday, 10.00–12.00 / 14.00–18.00
Entrance: Full price CHF 10 / Reduced price CHF 7 / Free on the first Sunday of the month
Info: www.centroculturalechiasso.ch www.maxmuseo.ch
