“The symbol of the apple runs through the entire history behind us, starting from the bite, which represents the detachment of humankind from nature and the origin of the artificial world. The Reintegrated Apple represents the entry into a new era, in which the artificial and natural worlds are reunited, generating a balance within society on a planetary scale. The symbol of the Reintegrated Apple represents the recomposition of opposing elements: nature and artifice. The apple signifies nature; the bite signifies artifice, as we see it used in a globally widespread computer brand as an emblem of technology that entirely replaces nature. With the Reintegrated Apple, artifice takes on the task of mending the part removed by the bite and reconnecting humanity to nature, rather than continuing to distance it from it.”

This is how Michelangelo Pistoletto presents one of his most well-known and appreciated works: The Reintegrated Apple. The first version was created in 2007, with a surface covered in wool, and exhibited that same year at GAMeC in La Spezia, as part of the exhibition Cittadellarte. Pistoletto and the Third Paradise.

In 2015, the work moved from Liguria to Lombardy, where it became one of Milan’s symbols. This year therefore marks a significant milestone: ten years of the Apple in the city. On the occasion of this “anniversary,” celebrated by Cittadellarte and FAI—also symbolically marked during the 2025 FAI Autumn Days—we retrace the origins and meanings of an installation that has become an icon of the Lombard capital.

The Reintegrated Apple from Piazza Duomo to Parco Sempione

The Reintegrated Apple was installed from May 3 to May 18, 2015, in Piazza Duomo as part of Expo in the City.

A monumental apple—approximately eight meters high and eight meters in diameter—was composed of a metal structure covered with natural grass, featuring a “bite” at the top, reintegrated through a metal stitching.

The work perfectly aligned with the FAI project Via Lattea, which, through a rich program of itineraries along dairy production routes and local agricultural excellence, aimed to reconnect Milan with its countryside and humanity with nature.

The installation was presented to the public on May 3, in the presence of Michelangelo Pistoletto, FAI representatives, city authorities, and Michael Møller, then Director-General of the United Nations Office in Geneva, and was completed by volunteers from FAI and Cittadellarte.

On that occasion, a striking collective performance led to the creation—around the Apple and at the center of the square—of the Third Paradise symbol, covering over 1,000 square meters and made with more than 150 hay bales.

From May 3 to May 18, FAI volunteers remained on site, explaining the work’s meaning and expressive power to the public, encouraging reflection on the importance of restoring harmony between nature and artifice.

The work was later relocated to Parco Sempione, in front of the FAI headquarters.

The Reintegrated Apple in Piazza Duca d’Aosta, in front of the Central Station

In 2016, the Apple was permanently installed in Piazza Duca d’Aosta, in front of Milan’s Central Railway Station.

Also monumental—weighing 11 tons and measuring 8 meters in height and 7 in diameter—this version consists of a metal structure entirely modeled with a clay plaster mixed with marble powder.

The work, by Michelangelo Pistoletto, was curated by Cittadellarte in collaboration with FAI – Fondo Ambiente Italiano, with the patronage and support of the Municipality of Milan, and with technical coordination by architect Tiziana Monterisi for Cittadellarte. Following an agreement between Pistoletto, Cittadellarte, FAI, and the Municipality, the installation was donated to the city of Milan.

“A symbolic work,” Pistoletto defined it, “that opens to the world, just as the railway station—also symbolically—opens the city to the world.”

The inauguration, held on March 21, was attended by Giuliano Pisapia, former Mayor of Milan; Filippo Del Corno, then Councillor for Culture; Maria Carmela Rozza, then Councillor for Public Works and Urban Furniture; Marco Magnifico, then Executive Vice President of FAI – Fondo Ambiente Italiano; and Michelangelo Pistoletto.

The initiative also featured another performance, created by Giuseppe Silvestrin: eight groups of twenty participants, accompanied by a dedicated musical score, moved toward the center of the square, positioning themselves along the outline of the Third Paradise.

In continuity with the work and the performance, Cittadellarte also organized the 2nd Rebirth Forum – The Reintegrated Apple, held from March 17 to 19 at the Cenacolo Hall of the Museum of Science and Technology.