May 27th, 2025 – ZEGNA is proud to announce its global multi-year partnership with Art Basel, marking a significant new chapter in the brand’s long-standing dedication to contemporary art and cultural dialogue. The collaboration reinforces ZEGNA’s commitment to supporting artists and artistic institutions that explore the intersection of creativity, community, and nature.
Art has always been part of ZEGNA’s identity as a language of values. Rooted in a tradition that dates back to the early 20th century, ZEGNA’s relationship with art was first envisioned by its Founder, Ermenegildo Zegna, who believed that art and beauty should serve as daily sources of inspiration. As part of his broader vision of giving back to the territory that shaped him, in the 1920s, he began commissioning local artists—including Ettore Pistoletto Olivero and Otto Maraini—to enrich the town of Trivero and the original wool mill at the heart of what is today known as Oasi Zegna, a 100 km² natural territory in the Italian Alps. These weren’t decorative gestures—they were expressions of a vision that industry could coexist with beauty, that a factory could become a place of culture. Monumental staircases, fountains, friezes, and portraits quietly transformed the Oasi Zegna landscape into a living museum. Over the decades, this vision has evolved. Without ostentation or commercial aim, ZEGNA continued to commission site-specific public artworks by artists like Daniel Buren, Dan Graham, and Roman Signer—each chosen not for their fame, but for their ability to interpret the ZEGNA world in an authentic way. Globally, ZEGNA has extended this vision by inviting artists like Graham Sutherland, Not Vital, and Kiki Smith to create bespoke wool trophies, symbolizing the brand’s legacy in textile innovation. Art is also present throughout ZEGNA’s spaces: in its Milan headquarters, the work Woolen—The Reinstated Apple by Michelangelo Pistoletto celebrates the authenticity of ZEGNA’s partners and the sustainable roots of its wool. Installations by William Kentridge, Mimmo Jodice, and Ettore Spalletti can be found in ZEGNA stores around the world. Each piece part of a larger, ongoing story that has never needed to be told loudly.
The partnership with Art Basel marks a pivotal moment, offering a global platform to celebrate art that resonates with ZEGNA’s values of environmental stewardship, cultural consciousness, and social engagement. For the first time, ZEGNA is ready to bring visibility to a long-protected legacy—not to brand it, but to let it blossom. With this partnership, ZEGNA found the right context to tell new chapters of its story, through the right voices, in the right way.
As Official Partner, ZEGNA will be present across all four Art Basel fairs—Basel, Miami Beach, Paris, and Hong Kong—and will create curated experiences that spark dialogue between art, design, and responsible entrepreneurship. At the center of this collaboration is “Visible", a project initiated by Cittadellarte – Fondazione Pistoletto and Fondazione Zegna, which supports socially engaged artistic practices through a pioneering fellowship model.
To strengthen the artistic dimension of the initiative and reinforce the partnership with Art Basel, Vincenzo De Bellis – Art Basel Director, Fairs and Exhibition Platforms – will join the Visible Steering Committee. “I’m honoured to join the “Visible" Steering Committee and deepen our shared commitment to art as a driver of social and environmental change. Through this partnership with ZEGNA and Cittadellarte–Fondazione Pistoletto, we’re supporting artists who use their practice to address today’s most urgent challenges and shape more resilient futures," said Vincenzo De Bellis.
“For over a century, our family has believed in the power of art to elevate places, enrich lives, and shape culture. This partnership with Art Basel and Cittadellarte is a natural evolution of that belief—a way to honor our legacy while looking forward. At ZEGNA, we see art not as embellishment, but as an agent of change. By supporting socially engaged artists through the “Visible" project, we’re reinforcing our commitment to a future where creativity, community, and responsibility can thrive together," added Gildo Zegna, Chairman and CEO of Ermenegildo Zegna Group.
“Visible" is not a recent invention—it’s rooted in a deep generational bond. Michelangelo Pistoletto’s father, Ettore Pistoletto Olivero, was among the first artists commissioned by Ermenegildo Zegna. That early connection laid the foundation for a shared belief: that art should not be confined to traditionally dedicated spaces, but embedded in the places where life happens.
This June, during Art Basel in Basel, ZEGNA will present the recipients of the 2025 Visible Situated Fellowships, spotlighting artists and collectives across the world who use their work to address today’s most urgent environmental and social challenges. The evening will also serve as a tribute to Michelangelo Pistoletto and his nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize—celebrating a lifetime dedicated to art as a catalyst for societal transformation.
The partnership with Art Basel represents a shared commitment to shaping culture through meaningful, lasting contributions to the arts. The natural evolution of a vision that ZEGNA quietly nurtured for generations and now, the time has come for that legacy to blossom: because the change we make in the world today will be the legacy we leave behind tomorrow.
