Late Polish sculptor Igor Mitoraj had
chosen the exact locations for the 30 sculptures that will go on
display starting May 14 in a traveling exhibition at Pompeii
before his death in October 2014, Culture Minister Dario
Franceschini said Tuesday.
Following the artist's wishes and under the artistic
direction of Luca Pizza from the Atelier Mitoraj, the 30
large-scale sculptures depicting imposing mythological
characters face off with the most well-known architecture of the
ancient city after being placed in key locations in the
archeological site of Pompeii - from the Forum to the Basilica,
from the Gladiators' Barracks to the Via dell'Abbondanza.
"Mythological gods and heroes populate the streets and the
squares of the city buried by Vesuvius, emerging like dreams
from the ruins," said Pompeii Superintendent Massimo Osanna.
"Mute and iconic symbols, the works of Mitoraj remind us,
in their immanence, of the deep value of classicism in
contemporary culture".
"There are no theories, there are no explanations," Mitoraj
said during an interview at his studio in Pietrasanta in
northern Tuscany.
"The works impose themselves on me - I am their slave," the
world-renowned artist said while guiding guests past a series of
paintings, bronzes, plaster casts and marbles - all with
classical features showing a bit of wear and tear.
"My models are the people of today - people who are living
right now," he said.
Following Mitoraj's death in Paris in October 2014, his
ashes were brought to their final resting place in Pietrasanta,
where he had made his home.
The artist's exhibition in Pompeii was curated by the
special superintendency for Pompeii together with Pietrasanta's
Atelier Mitoraj and the Contini Art Gallery, and promoted by the
Terzo Pilastro Foundation.
It follows previous exhibitions of a similar kind, that
included a 2011 show in Sicily's Valley of the Temples near the
city of Agrigento as well as the Trajan Markets in Rome.
In Pompeii, where Théophile Gautier wrote that only "two
steps separate ancient life from modern life", the last dream of
Mitoraj will be on display through January 2017.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
