Gardone-Viareggio exchange with an exhibition on Viani at Vittoriale and one on D'Annunzio in Versilia

On March 11, on the occasion of the celebration of D’Annunzio ’s 160th anniversary(Gabriele D’Annunzio was in fact born on March 12, 1863, in Pescara), Tends to Beauty and Adorns the World, the Vittoriale degli Italiani’s spring season kicks off with the opening of two exhibitions: the first dedicated to the Viareggio-born painter Lorenzo Viani (Viareggio, 1882 - Lido di Ostia, 1936), considered one of the greatest exponents of Italian Expressionism, and the second on the figure of the great 20th-century entrepreneur and patron, Vittorio Cini (Ferrara, 1885 - Venice, 1977) defined by Indro Montanelli as “the last Doge of Venice,” and one of the most intelligent collectors of the 20th century.

The exhibition Viani al Vittoriale, conceived by Giordano Bruno Guerri, Veronica Ferretti and Paolo Riani, is dedicated to the figure of Lorenzo Viani. Considered by critics to be one of the greatest protagonists of the Italian and European cultural scene at the beginning of the twentieth century, his art takes its cues from German Expressionism and D’Annunzio Symbolism. The installation is curated in collaboration with the Municipality of Viareggio as part of a project that sees the creation of two exhibitions dedicated to Lorenzo Viani (staged from March to September in the Vittoriale spaces of Villa Mirabella) and Gabriele d’Annunzio (from June to October at the GaMC in Viareggio) for the year 2023. The two initiatives - Viani at the Vittoriale and D’Annunzio in Viareggio - stem from the desire to make known the connection of these two artists with Versilia and with each other. A correlation that is particularly noticeable in Viani, who from a young age saw in D’Annunzio not only the poet of sweet melancholy, but also that of civic virtues and libertarian myth. A number of masterpieces by the Viareggio painter from the GaMC in Viareggio and private collections will be on display at Villa Mirabella, a special section will be devoted to woodcuts while carbon oils and pastels will tell the story of the artist’s personality.

As for Vittorio Cini, the exhibition at the Vittoriale will be the last of the three reviews closely related to his figure organized recently (previously at the Musei di San Salvatore in Lauro in Rome and at the Palazzo Bonacossi in Ferrara) and will be set up at the Vittoriale at the MAS Shelter and within the D’Annunzio Segreto itinerary and will feature some 30 works from public and private collections. It all stems from the will of Francesco and Riccardo Avati, who, on the occasion of the publication of the second edition of Anna Guglielmi Avati’s text, wanted to bring to the attention of scholars and artists the figure of this illustrious Italian, a protagonist of the 20th century.Marco Di Capua’s installation aims to tell the figure of Cini in a new light, offering visitors an insight into the “multidimensionality of the character” through original documents and the works of contemporary artists who either worked specifically for this exhibition or are linked to Cini by the same ideal path, chosen precisely by the curator. The artists are Riccardo Ajossa, Marco Bernardi, Alberto Biasi, Andrea Boyer, Vito Bongiorno, Lucia Crisci, Ettore de Conciliis, Stefania Fabrizi, Shay Frisch, Elisa Grezzani, Carlo Gavazzeni Ricordi, Claudio Koporossy, Rosaria Gini, Alessandra Giovannoni, Umberto Mariani, Riccardo Monachesi, Giorgio Ortona, Tommaso Ottieri, Achille Perilli, Elena Pinzuti, Pizzi Cannella, Mauro Reggio, Oliviero Rainaldi, Maurizio Savini, Giovanni Tommasi Ferroni, Emilio Vedova, Marco Verrelli and Ortensio Zecchino.

The second edition of Anna Guglielmi Avati’s volume on his grandfather Vittorio Cini, will be published by the publishing house Il Cigno GG Edizioni on the occasion of the opening of the exhibition, for an in-depth look at the most striking aspects of his life. "It is quite evident ,“ says the author in the foreword to the volume, ”that Vittorio Cini was a character who marked his era and continues to influence, through certain aspects of his work, the cultural life and thought of some Italians.

The volume also contains an essay by Giordano Bruno Guerri who writes, “Vittorio Cini is one of the most interesting figures of the Italian twentieth century [...] yet he is not studied enough. Yet his life is of those that can be called ’novel-like’.” Anauction together with Christie’ s will also be held in July in which many of the works on display will be sold, with the proceeds going to the reintegration into society of women who have suffered violence in Italy, an issue toward which, writes the Vittoriale in a note, “the Vate would surely have offered resources.”

For all information, the Vittoriale website can be consulted.

Image: Lorenzo Viani, Blessing of the Dead of the Sea (1914-1916; oil on canvas, 192 x 394 cm; Viareggio, GAMC)

Gardone-Viareggio exchange with an exhibition on Viani at Vittoriale and one on D'Annunzio in Versilia

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