Tuesday, September 1, 2026
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FRAGILE (2026). FORMULA 1 PIRELLI GRAN PREMIO D’ITALIA 2026 trophy. Realized by artistic duo vedovamazzei (Simeone Crispino and Stella Scala) and commissioned by Pirelli with Pirelli HangarBicocca. Courtesy of the artists. Photo: A. Osio.
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Press Release
The trophy for the FORMULA 1 PIRELLI GRAN PREMIO D’ITALIA 2026, titled FRAGILE, is a work of art by the artist duo vedovamazzei. This composite, mirroring sculpture unites motorsports and contemporary art, bringing them to the racetrack.
The commissioning of the trophy from Italian artists is part of a multi-year project now in its sixth edition, initiated by Pirelli —the title sponsor of the FORMULA 1 PIRELLI GRAN PREMIO D’ITALIA 2026— in collaboration with the Pirelli HangarBicocca Museum of Contemporary Art.
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For the sixth consecutive year, Pirelli and Pirelli HangarBicocca have collaborated by commissioning Italian artists to design a trophy to be raised on the podium, thereby forging a link between contemporary expression and Formula 1’s constant drive for innovation.
vedovamazzei (Stella Scala and Simeone Crispino) was entrusted with creating the trophy for the FORMULA 1 PIRELLI GRAN PREMIO D’ITALIA 2026. The duo has established itself in the contemporary art world for over three decades, and its works are included in major museums and private collections.
Titled FRAGILE and signed by vedovamazzei, the trophy was produced in a limited edition of four: three for the drivers who will claim the podium at Monza on September 6, and one for the winning team representative. The piece is a layered composition of household objects —cups and small bowls— that take on an unsteady-looking vertical form when stacked on top of each other.
“The idea for the trophy stems from the ancient tradition of passing a celebratory cup from hand to hand. It served as a large drinking vessel, creating a sense of shared celebration and festivity. We wanted the trophy to be the symbol of a victory that an individual holds in their hands, yet it reflects the spirit of a community. In the case of Formula 1, this community includes the team, the fans, and the entire world revolving around the drivers. The composition of tableware —cups, mugs, and small bowls— also evokes an everyday dimension with its repeated gestures, suggesting a victory earned lap after lap that never corresponds to an eternal, unchanging status. It is unstable, short-lived, and must be reclaimed. In fact, it is fragile.”
This is how the artists describe their concept for the prize to be awarded to the winners of the Formula 1 Grand Prix. Since the early 1990s, their artistic practice has existed at the intersection of irony and the ability to capture the contradictions and complexities of reality, while addressing pivotal themes that connect the past and present. Their areas of research include art history, cinema, literature, and popular culture. They draw references and citations from these fields to reinterpret pop icons, cultural symbols, and everyday objects, thereby highlighting the world's paradoxical aspects.
Through their research on the history of Formula 1 and visits to the Pirelli Foundation and Pirelli’s R&D laboratories, vedovamazzei developed a trophy rich in references – from Constructivism and Walt Disney’s animated films to metaphysics and the architecture of the absurd – that evokes Formula 1's foundational values: speed, strength, balance, and control. The conception of this sculptural object required a traditional process of transposing drawings and sketches onto paper, followed by a highly technological 3D printing process using nylon powder. This material was then painted, galvanized, and polished until it became reflective.
The commission awarded to vedovamazzei follows those assigned to Alice Ronchi (2021), Patrick Tuttofuoco (2022), Ruth Beraha (2023), Andrea Sala (2024), and Nico Vascellari (2025). The project is curated by Giovanna Amadasi, Head of Public and Educational Programs at Pirelli HangarBicocca.
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Artists’ Biographies
The vedovamazzei duo was formed in 1991 in Milan through the collaboration of artists Stella Scala and Simeone Crispino.
Selected Solo Exhibitions
2025—Milan Drawing Week 2025—5th Edition. Timeline: 1991–2025. La vita disegnata dei vedovamazzei. Ramo Collection, Milan, Italy. 2024—PAC 2024 Plan for Contemporary Art, promoted by the Directorate General for Contemporary Creativity of the Ministry of Culture; winners: vedovamazzei. Museum-Laboratory of Contemporary Art, Città Sant’Angelo (Pescara), Italy. 2024—Roma arte in Nuvola. Special Project. Focus on vedovamazzei. Rome, Italy 2024-LRVM Republic of San Marino. Special Project. Torre Guaita, San Marino Civic Gallery, Claudio Poleschi Gallery. 2023- New Egg. Off – Giannoni and Santoni. Special Project. Villa San Quirico, Turin, Italy. 2023-Early Works. Da Giotto a Hirst. Magazzino d’arte moderna, Rome. 2021—PAC 2021: Plan for Contemporary Art launched by the General Directorate for Contemporary Creativity of the Ministry of Culture; City of Fermo Award, winners: vedovamazzei. Fermo, Italy. 2020—Vedovamazzei presents After Love 2020/2023, MAXXI, Rome. 2018—Unexpected Landscapes. Galleria De Foscherari, Bologna, Italy. 2014—“The End of a Work Never Made.” Three-day performance at MAXXI, Rome. 2012—No Necestitas Suerte. Italian Cultural Institute, Madrid, Spain. 2011—One Too Many 15 Years Later. A Palazzo. Brescia, Italy. 2011—vedovamazzei. Le Temple, Paris, France. 2007—Public Art Projects, Art 38 Basel, Switzerland. 2006—Donnaregina Museum of Contemporary Art, Naples, Italy. 2005—Percy-Miller Gallery, London, UK. 2005—Vedovamazzei. Praz Delavallade. Paris, France. 2004—GAM, Turin, Italy. 2001—Eldorado, GAMec, Bergamo, Italy. 1998—Vedovamazzei, Studio Guenzani, Milan. 1997—Vedovamazzei, Center for Contemporary Photography, Melbourne, Australia.
Selected Group Exhibitions
2026—Tragicomica. Prospettive sull'arte italiana dal secondo Novecento a oggi. MAXXI. Rome. 2025—18th Quadriennale. “Fantastica” by Luca Beatrice. Palazzo delle Esposizioni, Rome, October 2025–January 2026. La Quadriennale di Roma Foundation, Italy. 2025 Winners of the 18th Rome Quadriennale Awards. “Fantastica.” 2024—OTP. Orizzonte Terzo Paradiso. Oltre l’Arte Povera. Vernazza, Cinque Terre, Italy. 2024—From the Collection: Together—Collaborative Art Practices. S.M.A.C.K., Ghent, Belgium. 2023—La pittura italiana oggi. Milan Triennale, Italy. 2023—Menegaz Foundation Collection. “Opere scelte per un nuovo percorso”, Palazzo Clemente, Castelbasso, Italy. 2023—Goal. Morra-Greco Foundation, Naples, Italy. 2023—Comodato d’artista. Italian Embassy in Bucharest, Romania. 2022—Opera Opera. Allegro ma non troppo, Palais Populaire, Berlin, Germany. In collaboration with MAXXI, Rome, Italy. 2019—“Notturno più”, The Pool NYC, Venice Biennale, Palazzo Cesari Marchesi, Campo Santa Maria del Giglio, Calle Rombiaso, Venice, Italy. 2017—Da io a Noi. La città senza confini. Quirinale Palace, Rome, Italy. 2017—Da Duchamp a Cattelan. Arte contemporanea sul Palatino. Rome, Italy. 2016—Horizontal. Casa Italia. Rio 2016, Brazil. 2015—Liberi tutti! Arte e società in Italia 1989/2001. Ettore Fico Museum, Turin, Italy. 2013—Exquisite Corpse. Galerie Georges Philippe et Nathalie Vallois, Paris, France. 2013—Non Basta Ricordare. MAXXI, Rome. 2012— Sideshow Dormitorio Pubblico Ugo Mulas 1954, Campoli Presti Gallery, Paris, France. 2012—Neon. La materia luminosa dell'arte, MACRO, Rome, Italy. 2011—Rebus. Simon Lee Gallery, London, United Kingdom. 2011—Terrible Beauty: Art, Crisis, Change & The Office of Non-Compliance. Dublin Contemporary 2011, Dublin Biennial, Ireland. 2011—Cambiare il mondo con un vaso di fiori. Mudac—Museum of Design and Contemporary Applied Arts, Lausanne, Switzerland. 2007—“Fit to Print: Printed Media in Recent Collage.” Gagosian Gallery, New York, USA. 2007—“Ironia Domestica” at MUSEION, Bolzano, Italy. 2006—“Young Italian Artists at the Turn of the Millennium.” Galleria Continua, Beijing, China. 2006—“At the Outskirts of Humor”, the 22nd Hamburg International Short Film Festival, Hamburg, Germany. 2004—Settlements, s’approprier un lieu Musée d’Art Moderne de Saint-Étienne Métropole, Saint-Étienne, France. 2003—Napoli anno zero. Qui e ora. Castel Sant’Elmo, Naples, Italy. 2002—3rd Montreal Biennale, Montreal, Canada. 2000—Over the Edges. S.M.A.K. Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst, Ghent, Belgium. 2000—3Räume 3Flüsse. Hann Münden, Germany. 2000—Ou sont les hommes? FRAC (Regional Contemporary Art Fund) Languedoc-Roussillon, Montpellier, France. 2000—Migrazioni e multiculturalità. Award for Young Italian Art, MAXXI, Rome. 2000—Balade en sol mineur. A selection of works from the FRAC (Regional Contemporary Art Fund), Languedoc-Roussillon, Montpellier, France. 2000—Soggettività e Rappresentazione. Contemporary Art Museum of Rivoli Castle, Turin, Italy. 1999—Mayday. National Art Center, Neuchâtel, Switzerland. 1997—Fatto in Italia/Made in Italy. Contemporary Art Center, Geneva, Switzerland. I.C.A., London, UK. 1995—Beyond the Borders. Gwangju Biennale, Gwangju, Korea. 1995—Campo ’95. Re Rebaudengo Foundation, Turin, Italy. Le Corderie, Venice, Italy. Konstmuseum, Malmö, Sweden. 1994—Prima linea. Flash Art Museum, Trevi, Perugia, Italy.
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