A space devoted to art: this is the Casa Italia welcoming the Azzurri to the World Ski Championships

Contemporary art and design to welcome the Italian alpine ski champions who are seeking medals at the World Ski Championships in Cortina 2021 until February 21: the design of Casa Italia, the residence that houses the retreat of the Italian team, was designed with the aim of hosting some of the best Italian excellence to offer Italy’s athletes not only a welcoming but also a refined environment. The project, titled Casa Italia Collection - FISI, was the result of a collaboration between the Italian Winter Sports Federation (FISI), CONI and Sport Salute Spa: the project is curated by Claudia Pignatale, founder of the Secondome gallery in Rome, while curators Beatrice Bertini and Benedetta Acciari of the Ex Elettrofonica gallery were responsible for the selection of artworks.

The spaces of Casa Italia were made with furniture entirely Made in Italy: the furnishings are by Edra, a highly regarded company from Valdera, based in Perignano (province of Pisa), which has been exporting its high-quality design furniture to the world since 1987, made with fine materials, craftsmanship, and advanced technology. Then again, the Gina chairs and Margherita armchairs bear the signature of designer Jacopo Foggini, the Grinza armchairs are by Fernando and Humberto Campana, and the On the Rocks sofa is by designer Francesco Binfarè. Light is provided by Clizia lamps designed by Adriano Rachele for Slamp, while Allaperto Mountain outdoor furniture is a design by Matteo Thun and Antonio Rodriguez for Ethimo.

Casa Italia in Cortina. Ph. Serena Eller

Casa Italia in Cortina. Ph. Serena Eller

Casa Italia in Cortina. Ph. Serena Eller

Casa Italia in Cortina. Ph. Serena Eller

The selection of artworks

The heart of the project, however, are the works selected by Bertini and Acciari. They begin with those of artist Marco Bernardi (Rome, 1969), who already has some experience in art and sports, having exhibited for the Internazionali d’Italia Tennis Championships, and then again for CONI’s 100th anniversary celebrations and on other occasions. To Casa Italia, Bernardi brought ten Italiette prêt-à-porter: small images of Italy decorating the walls of the Azzurri residence. Each piece of the installation was hand-sewn by the artist, who over time has collected the fabrics with which he made his works. The idea behind the work is that the particularity of the geographical shape of our nation makes it unmistakable and immediately recognizable: thus Italy becomes the symbol of the irrepressible imagination of Italian making, of the capacity for change and positive and spontaneous contamination that leads our country to be an example in the world of uniqueness and multiplicity at the same time.

On display at Casa Italia, Bertini and Acciari also brought six Hearts by Marco Bernardi, the same size as the human organ, wrapped in cloth and fur. With these works, the artist intends to create a precious monument to the heart, the seat of life and feelings, the place of function and emotion.

Bernardi is not the only artist: in fact, in the main hall one can admire a neon by Massimo Uberti (Brescia, 1966), an artist who specializes precisely in light sculptures. At Casa Italia, Uberti brings Beloved Space: in the artist’s intentions, a “beloved space” is something different for each of us, but nevertheless always a safe landing. In the context of Casa Italia Collection, the work intends to emphasize that wherever Casa Italia is in the world, when you enter it you are at home, in the sense of a place where you are welcomed. Moreover, in this circumstance, the beloved space is Italy itself, where we are and where we come to support our athletes.

Finally, the selection of artworks is completed by a large-scale work by Francesca Pasquali (Bologna, 1980), Iceberg, a large round reminiscent of certain sculptures by Mario Ceroli (one of which, moreover, is exhibited at MAMbo in Bologna, the city where Pasquali trained, at the local Academy of Fine Arts), formed from recycled transparent plastic straws, cut to different lengths and assembled on mirror-polished Plexiglas in a circular shape. In this context, the work is intended as a citation of the gold medals that are contested by athletes, but the material with which the work is made also alludes to the importance of taking care of the planet.

One of the prêt-à-porter Italiette by Marco Bernardi

Heart and one of the Italiette prêt-à-porter by Marco Bernardi

Iceberg by Francesca Pasquali

Casa Italia in Cortina. Ph. Serena Eller

Casa Italia in Cortina. Ph. Serena Eller

Casa Italia in Cortina. Ph. Serena Eller

A space devoted to art: this is the Casa Italia welcoming the Azzurri to the World Ski Championships

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