Broken: The Power of the Fragment in Sculpture treats damaged and incomplete sculpture not simply as art in a diminished state, but as evidence of history and a source of new meaning. Organized by the National Gallery of Art and Florence’s Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi, the exhibition is on view in Florence through January 24, 2027, before its Washington presentation from March 13 to June 27, 2027. Smithsonian Magazine describes the show as spanning 4,500 years; the National Gallery frames it as works from 2,500 BCE to today.
What is the “power of the fragment”?
The exhibition asks viewers to look at sculpture after its original form has been altered or lost. A missing limb, a shattered surface or a surviving piece separated from its original setting can be an artwork in its own right—and a record of the forces that changed it. The break may preserve traces of political upheaval, religious change, war, environmental damage or an artist’s deliberate choice.
That shift in attention is central to curator C. D. Dickerson III’s interpretation, as reported by Smithsonian Magazine: “One of the unique qualities of fragments is that they focus your attention on details.” Separated from a complete figure, a hand or a face can draw attention to its material and expression while prompting questions about what is absent and why.
The show’s chronological reach is described differently by its organizers and coverage. Smithsonian calls it a 4,500-year span, while the National Gallery of Art describes its scope as extending from 2,500 BCE to today. These are the sources’ framings, not a single exact elapsed-duration calculation.
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Why are the sculptures broken?
There is no single cause. The National Gallery’s account ranges from iconoclasm during political or religious change to war and vandalism, and from erosion and natural disasters to sculpture made to look broken. Smithsonian’s coverage also discusses colonial activity and looting as part of the broader histories fragments can carry.
- Political and religious destruction: Images have been damaged or destroyed during changes of regime and religious transformation. Smithsonian quotes Andrew Sears describing this practice in the ancient world, where images were sometimes believed to contain a ruler’s life force.
- War and vandalism: The exhibition addresses damage associated with conflicts including World War II and the Cambodian Civil War.
- Environmental change and disaster: Erosion, earthquakes and floods can alter sculpture over time, leaving damage that becomes part of an object’s history.
- Artistic decisions: Some artists have chosen to make work that appears broken rather than presenting damage as an accidental loss.
- Colonial activity and looting: A fragment’s history can also involve the removal or displacement of cultural objects, not only physical breakage.
Objects that show how fragments carry history
Constantine’s pointing hand
A right hand from the colossal statue of Constantine, dated around 330 CE, is among the National Gallery’s highlighted loans from Rome’s Capitoline Museums. Smithsonian describes the hand and its pointing finger as a “canonical fragment,” a surviving part that has taken on a distinct identity of its own.
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A woman from Tamtoc
The National Gallery identifies a rare, life-size sculpture of a woman from the ancient Mesoamerican city of Tamtoc, dated around 200 CE. Discovered in 2005, it is described by the Gallery as never before exhibited in the United States.
Remains of an Athenian Agora horse statue
The National Gallery highlights remains of an early bronze equestrian statue dated around 303–302 BCE and originally installed at the Athenian Agora. Smithsonian reports a more specific possible identification: a leg, sword and drapery may have belonged to a statue of King Demetrius I Poliorcetes, erected around 302 BCE and destroyed around 200 BCE for political reasons. The Gallery’s description establishes the exhibition’s broader identification; the king attribution is reported as a possibility by Smithsonian.
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Akhenaten’s nose and lips
Smithsonian reports that a limestone fragment showing the nose and lips of Akhenaten was made around 1350 BCE and found in an ancient rubbish deposit east of the Nile. Its survival as a small part of a larger image makes the fragment’s own features the focus.
A bullet-damaged Mussolini bust
Smithsonian describes a modernist bust of Mussolini from 1923 with a bullet hole. Italian partisans shot it in 1945, after Mussolini’s rule had ended. Here damage is not an abstract mark: it is tied to a particular political moment.
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A Neo-Hittite sculpture reassembled after wartime damage
A roughly 3,000-year-old sculpture of a woman, excavated in Syria, was damaged by bombing during World War II and reassembled in the 2000s, according to Smithsonian. The mortar between its fragments remains visible in the exhibition, making the repair part of what viewers see.
A Tuscan sculpture marked by Florence’s flood
Smithsonian reports that a 14th-century Tuscan sculpture of Christ was marred in Florence’s 1966 flood. Palazzo Strozzi director Arturo Galansino connected the show’s Florence presentation to the flood’s 60th-anniversary year, framing damaged sculpture in relation to climate problems.
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Where and when to see the exhibition
| Venue | Dates | Admission and practical details | Presentation notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Palazzo Strozzi, Florence | September 25, 2026–January 24, 2027 | FeelFlorence lists admission from €6 to €16. Listed hours are 10:00–20:00 Monday through Wednesday and Friday through Sunday, and 10:00–23:00 Thursday. Check Palazzo Strozzi’s current visitor information for reductions, free tickets and any changes. | FeelFlorence reports more than 80 works and a site-specific installation by Dutch artist Mark Manders in the Renaissance courtyard. |
| National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. | March 13–June 27, 2027; West Building, Main Floor | The National Gallery says admission is always free and passes are not required. | The Gallery’s March 6, 2026, announcement described more than 70 works from over 50 lenders and announced site-specific installations. |
Published work counts differ by source and should not be treated as a settled final checklist: the National Gallery’s March 2026 release says more than 70 works from over 50 lenders, while FeelFlorence and Smithsonian report more than 80. The available descriptions do not establish that the two venues will show identical selections.
How the two presentations differ
This is one exhibition organized jointly by the National Gallery of Art and Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi, presented in Florence and then Washington—not two competing shows. The Florence listing highlights Mark Manders’s courtyard installation, while the National Gallery has announced site-specific installations for its Washington presentation. Visitors should use the relevant venue’s current listing for details about its own display and logistics.
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