Pompeo Borra

Pompeo Borra (Milan, January 28, 1898 – Milan, November 15, 1973) was one of the leading figures of the second generation of the Italian Novecento movement. Born in Milan, Borra abandoned technical studies to pursue art, enrolling at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera. In 1916, he volunteered for the First World War and, after the conflict, dedicated himself to painting in a studio located on via dell’Annunciata, along the Naviglio in Milan, where he remained until 1938. His style developed within the Novecento aesthetic, oscillating between magical realism and metaphysical painting, characterized by two-dimensional figures, simplified volumes, and suspended, timeless atmospheres. Borra was deeply influenced by the founding group of the Novecento movement, including Anselmo Bucci, Gian Emilio Malerba, Piero Marussig, Ubaldo Oppi, Mario Sironi, and Achille Funi, whom he greatly admired.
Throughout the 1920s, Borra participated in numerous collective exhibitions, including the XIV International Art Exhibition in Venice in 1924 and the Quadriennale in Turin in 1923. His work attracted the attention of Franz Roh, the theorist of magical realism, who invited him to the Italian art exhibition at the Kunstverein in Leipzig in 1928. In the 1930s, after several stays in Paris, his painting became increasingly abstract, with minimal compositions and rarefied atmospheres. Among his best-known works are landscapes, portraits, and still lifes, often signed and present in public and private collections.
In addition to his artistic activity, Borra dedicated himself to teaching and became director of the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera from 1970 to 1972. His artistic production has been the subject of numerous exhibitions and auctions, with valuations reflecting his significant role in the Italian art scene of the 20th century.