Florence: five works unveiled in front of the Palace of Justice

The five winning entries in a competition held to beautify the Palace of Justice in Florence were unveiled. The competition call was issued in August 2015 under Law 717 of 1949, which requires public administrations constructing new public buildings to allocate a portion of the total projected expenditure to carry out works to beautify the buildings.

As many as 228 applications were received, of which only 13 made it through the first stage that would have allowed five of them to be chosen by a jury composed of artists Daniela Di Lorenzo and Massimo Barzagli, Clementina Ricci, niece of the late courthouse designer Leonardo Ricci, Claudio Paolini delegate of the Superintendency of Landscape Heritage, and Municipal Director of Culture Gabriella Farsi.
The winners, decreed earlier this year, are: the Japanese Shigeru Saito with “Before Sunset”; Antonio Violetta with “Justice”; Sislej Xhafa, an artist from Kosovo, with “J”; Virginia Zanetti with "The Starry Sky Above Me, the Moral Law in Me," and Mauro Pace together with Saverio Villirillo and Gregorio De Luca Comandini with "Metabole."

Present at the opening was Mayor Dario Nardella, who stressed, "The law of 1949 is somewhat forgotten. Instead, Florence wants to actualize it and continue to believe in it, giving artists a positive message and inviting them to remain protagonists and launch new styles and avant-gardes. It is no coincidence that we wanted in the competition to have a section reserved for under-35s. The courthouse is and should be a symbol not only of trials but of justice, humanity and civilization. Through these works we want to launch an alliance between culture and justice, between art and rights. It is a beautiful and sensible alliance, but alas against the current in our country. Florence also intends to apply this law to other public investments, for example in the redevelopment works of the Fortezza, the Meccanotessile, and the Manifattura Tabacchi. We will ask the relevant ministry whether the tramway could also fall within the scope."

Florence: five works unveiled in front of the Palace of Justice

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