Modica, Adrian Paci reinterprets the rite of Madonna Vasa Vasa with a touching performance

U ’ncuontru (The Encounter) is the title of the performance that Adrian Paci ( Scutari, 1969) held at dawn last April 7 in Modica ( Ragusa): with his work, the Albanian artist reinterpreted the traditional rite of the Madonna Vasa Vasa, a typical religious festivity of Easter in Modica, along the side streets that lead from the church of Santa Maria di Betlem to the sides of the steps of the church of San Pietro. Here, in a muffled and surreal atmosphere, the statue of the Virgin met and embraced that of the risen Christ, without an audience. In fact, in addition to the artist, only a group of members of the Association of the Bearers of St. Mary of Bethlehem and some cameramen were present for the video shoot. The event, which was held in the strictest secrecy, was announced only a few hours after its conclusion.

The project was carried out by the Laveronica Arte contemporanea gallery and supported by the Bishop of Noto, Monsignor Antonio Staglianò, Don Antonio Maria Forgione, parish priest of Santa Maria di Betlem, and the municipal administration of Modica, in compliance with anti-Covid regulations.

“Every year, on Easter Day at noon sharp, ”explains gallery owner Corrado Gugliotta of Laveronica, "the statues of the Risen Christ and the Madonna dressed in mourning, after a search path meet in Piazza Monumento, where the traditional ’vasata’ takes place and where the statue of the Madonna, at the sight of the Risen One, as a sign of joy, abandons her black mantle and begins to spread her arms, simulating the gesture of embrace and then that of kiss. Adrian Paci has participated several times in the past in the Modican Easter rites being fascinated by the human participation, the festive atmosphere, the gestures and the rhythm of the procession. In times of pandemic, the processions were cancelled, but Adrian imagined a nocturnal and ’clandestine’ encounter. Far from the lights and excitement of the crowd. A silent and intimate encounter between mother and son, between a woman veiled in black who removes her cloak and embraces her son believed dead."

Paci thus created a silent procession different from the one that usually accompanies the rite of the Madonna vasa vasa (the locution means “kiss kiss” and refers to the moment when the statue of Mary and that of Jesus unite in a metaphorical kiss), accompanied by the marching band, the bursting of firecrackers and huge crowds, but that is precisely why it is charged with new meanings. If the secrecy and clandestinity of the rite recall that of the first Christian communities, the silence and solitude reveal the human face of Mother and Son, encourage the rediscovery of the essential and authentic meanings of Easter, stripped of externalities and folklore, in a dawn of hope and rebirth.

Video of the event will be produced in the coming weeks. From April 6 to July 31 on the premises of Laveronica Gallery, 93 Via Clemente Grimaldi, a solo exhibition by Adrian Paci entitled The Encounter will be on view. On display will be the video and a series of photos taken from the famous performance of the same name that took place in Scicli in 2011, also born from the collaboration between the gallery and the great Albanian artist and of which U ’ncuontru, ten years later, represented an ideal continuation. From Laveronica Arte contemporanea a special “thank you” goes to the head of cabinet of the Prefecture of Ragusa Gabriele Barbaro, the Prefecture official Rosario Caccamo, the municipal councillor for Public Works and Urban Planning Giorgio Linguanti and the singer-songwriter Giovanni Caccamo, who made the event possible.

For all information you can call +39 0932 1881704 or send an email to info@gallerialaveronica.it.

Modica, Adrian Paci reinterprets the rite of Madonna Vasa Vasa with a touching performance

Warning: the translation into English of the original Italian article was created using automatic tools. We undertake to review all articles, but we do not guarantee the total absence of inaccuracies in the translation due to the program. You can find the original by clicking on the ITA button. If you find any mistake,please contact us.