Salvatore Scarpitta: Racing Cars follows the thirty-year trajectory of an American original, from object-maker to performance artist, from gallery to race track. This major reexamination of a seminal postwar American artist focuses on his racing-themed artwork, including his race cars—both replicas and fully functional—the largest collection ever assembled in a museum in the U.S.

Scarpitta led a remarkable life. From Hollywood High to the Accademia di Belle Arte in Rome to the Italian resistance during WWII to Leo Castelli’s gallery in New York, he’s worthy of a biopic. In the midst of it all, he helped transform American art. Lisa Melandri discusses the artist and his impact on visual culture. This event is free and open to the public.