Producers of silence curated by Saverio Verini in collaboration with Matteo Fato
with Lorenzo Aceto, Francesco Barocco, Lula Broglio, Lucia Cantò, Daniela Comani, Marco De Leonibus, Petra Feriancova, Alberto Garutti, Franco Guerzoni, Guido Guidi, Helena Hladilova, Elena Mazzi, Sabrina Mezzaqui, Nunzio, Mattia Pajè, Alice Pilusi, Gianni Politi, Fabrizio Prevedello, Letizia Scarpello, Danilo Sciorilli, Eliano Serafini
Palazzo Maccafani, Piazza Maccafani 5
Pereto 67064 (AQ)
from 19 Jul to 23 Aug 2020
Photo courtesy: Giorgio Benni and the artists
This summer, the fourth edition of Straperetana returns to the hamlet of Pereto, in the province of L’Aquila, Italy. Conceived by Paola Capata and Delfo Durante, and curated by Saverio Verini, this year’s edition will feature 21 artists. Between July and August, the artists’ works will be scattered across the hamlet, in an open dialogue with its historical buildings, alleys and abandoned homes. The exhibition will take over all of Pereto in the hopes of offering a novel experience of both the works and the hamlet itself. The title of the fourth edition – Producers of silence – is inspired by writer Giorgio Manganelli’s (1922 - 1990) apt expression when he defined Abruzzo as ‘a great producer of silence’ in his wonderfully literary series of articles in 1987. This trait equally applies to Pereto and its surrounding landscape, intercepting a ‘topos’ of artistic creation. From the desolate stage of the renaissance la città ideale or the ideal city, to the attempt to capture silence in John Cage’s composition 4’33”, through to Giorgio de Chirico’s piazzas, many works have, in one way or another, offered themselves to this condition of the absence of sound and noise. The idea of silence offers numerous possibilities: straperetana sought out artists who, through their works, emphasised a contemplative dimension, a predisposition to the creation of essential and dry images in an attempt to establish a ‘pact of attention’ with the viewers. An attitude which has always been part of the work of many artists, in all fields, but which also finds a contemporaneity in the historic moment we are living in. Images of deserted and quiet cities persisted during the weeks of lockdown – a condition which has brought a physiological slowing down of activities, which, in some cases, has necessitated a suspension of the background noises of our daily lives. Producers of silence aims to intercept this type of intimate and individual reaction, without proposing any kind of story tied to the pandemic. The 2020 edition of straperetana also intends to juxtapose different generations of artists: from the 79-year-old Guido Guidi to the 23-year-old Alice Pilusi, the exhibition will bring together both established and emerging artists – an aspect which has always characterised the exhibition. The show will look at the past 50 years of research and artistic production, with a particular focus on Italy. The artist and Accademia di Belle Arti di Urbino lecturer Matteo Fato (Pescara, 1979) has played a fundamental role in the selection of younger artists. Already present in the past three editions of straperetana, here Fato – deeply knowledgeable about the emerging art scene in Abruzzo – has collaborated with the curator Saverio Verini on the selection of a handful of artists from the area. Viewers wandering along the exhibition trail will come across a variety of media, including environmental and site-specific installations, paintings, projections, photography and sculpture, offering a broad look at the practices of the involved artists. “We had been working for months on this fourth edition of straperetana when the lockdown kicked in on a global scale, with the subsequent shutting down of exhibitions spaces, and postponing and cancelling of many events,” comment the organisers of the exhibition. “We nevertheless decided to continue our dialogue with the artists and our organising efforts, in the hope to inaugurate Producers of silence in the summer, as originally planned. We are particularly happy, therefore, to announce the 2020 edition of our project: a confirmation which has special value in light of all the encountered uncertainties and difficulties, in line with our desire to restart after the lockdown. The 21 artists invited to the fourth edition of straperetana are: Lorenzo Aceto (Pescara, 1985), Francesco Barocco (Susa, 1972), Lula Broglio (Sanremo, 1993), Lucia Cantò (Pescara, 1995), Daniela Comani (Bologna, 1965), Marco De Leonibus (Pescara, 1993), Petra Feriancova (Bratislava, Slovakia, 1977), Alberto Garutti (Galbiate, 1948), Franco Guerzoni (Modena, 1948), Guido Guidi (Cesena, 1941), Helena Hladilova (Kroměříž, Czech Republic, 1983), Elena Mazzi (Reggio Emilia, 1984), Sabrina Mezzaqui (Bologna, 1964), Nunzio (Cagnano Amiterno, 1954), Mattia Pajè (Melzo, 1991), Alice Pilusi (Atri, 1997), Gianni Politi (Roma, 1986), Fabrizio Prevedello (Padova, 1972), Letizia Scarpello (Pescara, 1989), Danilo Sciorilli (Atessa, 1992), Eliano Serafini (Pescara, 1991).