Andrea Bianconi donates one of his chairs to his town, Arzignano: it will become a monument

A gift from Andrea Bianconi to his hometown of Arzignano: in fact, the artist has decided to donate to his town the Sit Down to Have an Idea designer armchair. From an everyday object used by the artist in his studio, a place of fundamental inspiration for his creative activity, the “armchair of ideas” will become a permanent monument in Arzignano in the province of Vicenza. On Sunday, June 11, at 11 a.m. in Piazza Libertà, the unveiling ceremony of the bronze work of art will be held in the presence of Mayor Alessia Bevilacqua.

Starting from Andrea Bianconi’s studio in Arzignano, the “chair of ideas” has reached many places in Italy and crossed borders. "Sit Down to Have an Idea is a work that has the dimension of participation in its DNA," says curator Giuseppe Frangi. “So it has happened in all its appearances, starting with the first performance in Bologna followed by the climb to Mount Carega in 2020, and then Tropea, Colletta di Castelbianco, Chiampo, Lodi, Vicenza, Milan, Houston, Savona, Florence. Each time the armchair was accompanied on its way to the different settlements by a collective ritual, as if it were a ”saint“ carried in procession. Then the armchair arranged itself to accommodate the sitting of thousands of people with the aim of stimulating creative processes. Now the armchair becomes a ”monument“ in a bronze version that Andrea Bianconi wanted to donate to his city. But it is not a monument to itself, rather it is a monument for anyone who will sit in it. So a living, open, non-rhetorical monument, a celebration of the uniqueness that each of us is. Activator of ideas, certainly. With its conformation so available and accessible, the first idea it activates is an idea of sympathy and friendship.”

“This will be a special moment for Arzignano,” adds Mayor Bevilacqua, “because Andrea Bianconi is donating to his city a conceptual work that has become world famous. The work will culturally and aesthetically enhance the center of Arzignano. It is a work that is more than a monument, that is more than an installation to be observed, because it is a place to live, in which to think, and that enhances and values the uniqueness of each of us. We are grateful to Andrea for this donation and for the love he shows for our community. The City of Arzignano, therefore, is placing Andrea Bianconi’s armchair as a permanent work in the city’s main square because of the high symbolic value of the message it conveys and because his work has now become iconographic entering the mindsent of our generation. Arzignano can only be proud of what he is accomplishing and this recognition makes our city proud.”

“Most of the ideas that have nurtured my history as an artist I got among these streets, observing and meeting people: that is, living Arzignano,” says Andrea Bianconi. “I thought of this work as a return for what I received and as an expression of my gratitude. It is a work that invites the activation of other ideas and for this it fills me with joy. With this work I want to donate a meeting point for an ongoing exchange of ideas, visions, and goals. It is a work for everyone and of everyone.”

Andrea Bianconi donates one of his chairs to his town, Arzignano: it will become a monument

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