The Venus of the Rags by Michelangelo Pistoletto, a symbol of rebirth and stubborn hope, is preparing to leave Piazza Municipio, in Naples, after more than five months of exhibition. The sculpture will in fact find a new location in the city, after a restoration and recovery intervention.
The location identified by the municipal administration is the Church of San Severo al Pendino, among the symbolic places of via Duomo, Strada dei Musei. Already the protagonist of a broad enhancement action through contemporary art exhibitions and site-specific interventions that will animate it throughout 2024, the Church will allow regular use of the work, reaffirming the role of public art as a tool for urban regeneration and enhancement of the city’s cultural heritage.
The dismantling of the Venus will begin on August 19, after which Cittadellarte – Fondazione Pistoletto will provide the necessary restoration and conservation work. “Art and culture are fundamental elements for urban regeneration and social cohesion, and Naples, with its thousand-year history and its contemporary vivacity, is the ideal place to experiment with new forms of artistic expression,” said Mayor Gaetano Manfredi. The Venus of the Rags “represented a concrete example of how art can transform and enrich the urban fabric. We are committed to supporting and promoting initiatives such as ‘Napoli Contemporanea’ to ensure that Naples continues to be a crossroads of creativity and innovation, a cultural point of reference at an international level.”
Following a desire expressed several times, on July 8 Michelangelo Pistoletto presented a formal proposal to donate the work to the Municipality of Naples, thus confirming the deep bond that ties him to the city and the value of art as a driving force for social transformation. At the conclusion of the necessary administrative process, still underway, the Venus will therefore become part of the institution’s assets and the work, whose estimated value is equal to one million euros, will be able to find a new and definitive location in the city.
“The Venus of the Rags – Pistoletto explained – has two souls, on the one hand Venus, a fertile beauty that crosses all times and permeates the human spirit, on the other the rags, which are disintegration and ruin. The classic icon of Venus embraces, welcomes, regenerates and gives new life to the rags, introducing them into the spiritual mythology of art. In short, the work is the symbol of balance and harmony that we can all share and put into practice. Naples is a city that has an extraordinary venerability, is illuminated by art, and is at the same time opposed by shadows of lacerating degradation. For this reason, I want the work to remain in Naples and serve everyone to work on regeneration, to take the rags back in hand and transform them into works of art. And I am happy that it will be welcomed by a building immersed in the historic heart of the city, the Church of San Severo al Pendino, which reflects its intrinsic spirituality”.
In these months of exhibition in Piazza Municipio, the Venere degli stracci has become part of the urban fabric, inserting itself into the imagination of the city and attracting thousands of citizens and tourists every day. A clear sign that the path taken by the administration, which sees art and culture as a fundamental lever for development, is the right one”. Taking the place of the Venere degli stracci will be “Tu si ‘na cosa grande”, the last autographed work of the maestro Gaetano Pesce. Conceived by the artist before his death, which occurred last April 3, the work represents an authentic act of love for the city of Naples and its culture.
The exhibition of the work, curated by Silvana Annicchiarico, will begin on October 9th as part of the public art program “Napoli Contemporanea”, strongly supported by Mayor Gaetano Manfredi and curated by Vincenzo Trione. Pesce’s work, full of meaning and symbolism, it is said, will offer a new cultural reference point for citizens and visitors, confirming once again Naples as a crossroads of great contemporary artistic expressions.