Florence is one of the two or three cities that sit on top of the art world. It has most of Michelangelo’s greatest sculptures, all of Botticelli’s greatest paintings, Bernini’s greatest bust, and the two best Italian-Gothic churches. It has the lions’ share of the world’s great 13th, 14th and 15th century paintings, as well as the lion’s share of the paintings and frescoes (by Paolo Ucello and Massacio) that invented “perspective.” It has the prettiest cathedral in Italy, with the best dome in Europe. It is not a city you go to to see modern art.
So I was surprised during a recent visit to walk by the Palazzo Strozzi—the Medici-rival Strozzi-family’s castle-esque home, now a museum—and see signs advertising a show called “From Kandinsky to Pollock.” I went inside for a look.
