Leonardesca. At the Swabian Castle in Bari, Omar Galliani pays tribute to Leonardo da Vinci.

Omar Galliani (Montecchio Emilia, 1954) pays tribute to Leonardo da Vinci (Vinci, 1452 - Amboise, 1519) in the noble rooms of Bari’s Castello Svevo. On the 500th anniversary of the death of one of the most representative figures of the Renaissance, the great tradition of Italian drawing lives again in the works of Omar Galliani, an artist appreciated internationally for his ability to bring the classical technique of “sfumato” to a monumental dimension.

The exhibition, titled Leonardesca and curated by Mariastella Margozzi, is promoted by the Directorate of the Polo Museale della Puglia and the Vincenzo Maria Valente Music Foundation in partnership with Exprivia/Italtel, Via Della Spiga Milano, Indeco spa, with the support of Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera, Fondazione Puglia, Giuseppe Saverio Poli, Banca Popolare di Puglia e Basilicata, University of Bari, and the Southern Adriatic Sea Port System Authority.

“Leonardesque,” writes Mariastella Margozzi, "not only because it is a tribute to the great genius of the Renaissance whose death marks the 500th anniversary of his death this year, but Leonardoesque in the sense that from Leonardo da Vinci Galliani has always drawn inspiration for his skilful drawing style and hyper-naturalistic use of “sfumato.” The exercise of drawing and its being the absolute protagonist of the work is, in Galliani’s creative itinerary, the transposition into contemporaneity of the unveiling of nature in the “design” of the artistic image. It is the same path indicated by Leonardo that directed his art, which therefore remains bound with deep roots in the womb of Italian art history and continues to represent in stylistic synthesis its essence, measure (in the sense of balance) and the need to express the soul of the world."

“The exhibition,” explains Omar Galliani, "moves from a face, imaginary features and some historical notes that from Milan takes us to Bari, to the Castello Svevo. It is the youthful face of Bona Sforza, handed down through Leonardoesque ideals, to which several possible features have been superimposed over time, then transited in as many well-known works of the genius from Vinci. Looking for a face in the multitude could be the activity of a detective or a difficult identikit, in my case, however, the search is purely ideal and emphatic. The works I will exhibit in Bari belong to different periods of my work and have in common one face, the female face."

The exhibition, which will take place in the Federico II Hall, the Norman Hall and the Bona Sforza Hall, will include about twenty-five works, including large plates and works on paper. A long corridor of the manor will feature the most impressive panel ever made in graphite, Grande Disegno Italiano, presented in 2005 at theState Archives of Turin together with an original drawing by Leonardo da Vinci. Eight unpublished works will also reconstruct the identikit of Bona Sforza, which will be developed around a single subject, plumbed in different postures of the face and the nape of the neck. Finally, a reconnaissance through some of the Master’s early works, made from details of faces or drawings taken from well-known Leonardo notebooks, will be proposed.

Finally, in the Sala Normanna, Via Della Spiga Milano, a well-known Italian fashion brand that last April 13, 2019, paraded at theHotel Excelsior in Rome on the occasion of the 30th edition of the Gala delle Margherite, will present some precious sartorial garments, signed by Omar Galliani and made by the Milanese maison on soft and elegant fabrics, between art and tailoring.

The Exhibition will be open until September 9, 2019 with the same entrance ticket to the Castle and with the same access modes: from Wednesday to Monday with hours 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. (ticket office closed at 6:30 p.m.), closed on Tuesdays.

The Catalog, published by Corsiero editore, features critical texts by Nadia Stefanel and Mariastella Margozzi and a rich iconographic apparatus.

For all information you can send an email to pm-pug.castellosvevo@beniculturali.it or visit the official website of the Puglia Museum Pole.

Pictured: Omar Galliani, Leonardesca #2 (2019; pencil on board and pastel, 50x50 cm)

Leonardesca. At the Swabian Castle in Bari, Omar Galliani pays tribute to Leonardo da Vinci.

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