Gaetano Pesce in Naples, sons speak: "our father didn't want to offend or make an obvious work"

Gaetano Pesce did not want to offend Naples. After thewave of hilarity and jeers that Tu si’ ’na cosa grande caused around the world, with the news of the work (which was supposed to resemble Punchinello’s suit, but reminded most of a huge phallic shape: the artist’s name, “Pesce,” meaning sexual organ in Neapolitan dialect, and the title Tu si’ ’na cosa grande, did the rest) also picked up by international news outlets, though more for the controversy it raised than for the meaning it embodied, now all those involved in theinstallation are speaking out. Curator Silvana Annicchiarico, her children Milena and Jacopo Pesce, the artist’s studio, and set designer Luca Bertozzi, who oversaw the creation of the large installation. Each of them offers their own version.

According to Milena and Jacopo Pesce, the artist obviously never intended to offend the city or offer it something taken for granted. “We remember perfectly that walk along the Naples waterfront with Dad, when we came across a Punchinello. In that moment, our father-who had his photograph taken almost hugging the city’s iconic mask-reiterated all his love for Naples, its culture and its vitality. He would never have thought of offering Naples something offensive or obvious. On the contrary, he wanted to give two hearts. He chose to celebrate the more feminine and colorful side of Punchinello, dressing him in bright hues, in stark contrast to the traditional white. It was a very sweet gesture, highlighting a nuanced, open and welcoming Naples, just like the love he felt for her.”

"The installation project Tu si’ ’na cosa grande," explains curator Silvana Annicchiarico, Tu has been in gestation since November 15, 2022. It has been a long journey, with changes in the identification of the public space that would host it. From Piazza Plebiscito, to Rotonda Diaz, to the Villa Comunale to Piazza Municipio. Gaetano Pesce wanted a work that would testify to his affection for a land he loved deeply and in which his family’s roots lay. The elements Pesce used for this installation are archetypes of his poetics. The heart for example we find back in 1972 in a sketch titledTwo Hearts Lamp, or again in the 2001 project for the World Trade Center where he imagined a pluralist architecture capable of narrating cultures and places. We find the same Pulcinella in 2020: reduced to a shirt with black buttons, it becomes a floor lamp."

“After further investigation,” the curator continues, "Gaetano told us to remove the buttons because it was a distinctive feature of Pierrot’s mask, and he wanted to simplify the robe and lapel in a more schematic way. The drawings, sketches and executive project with all the details and measurements were completed, approved by him and delivered while he was still alive. His was the choice of Luca Bertozzi’s workshop for implementation. Even the title of the work was derived from several conversations and exchanges.... we had reasoned around I love Napoli, Napoli amore mio, Tu si ’na cosa grande, until we all agreed, starting with him on the title that was eventually chosen.... ".

According to the curator, Pesce strongly felt the “noise of time” and “especially in the last phase of his life this noise was amplified. He was overwhelmed by a fervent creativity and desire to do. Therefore, this work, started about 2 years ago, had been totally thought out by the artist, even the direction of the musical performance and the choice of Ravel’s Bolero had been ’designed’ by Pesce in every detail.”

“We have been working with Gaetano for the past two years on the creation of this work, which has been reproduced according to his instructions and following his sketches and drawings,” Studio Gaetano Pesce instead let them know. “Even, the dress of the colored ’modern’ Punchinello from Gaetano’s sketch was faithfully printed on the plasticized fabric that covers the work. He himself during the development of the project had explicitly requested the elimination of the buttons from the initial model, which did not belong to Pulcinella’s traditional dress. According to Gaetano’s approved design, Punchinello will have to wear the multicolored dress throughout the installation period. We confirm that the work installed in Piazza Municipio is autographed.”

Finally, set designer Luca Bertozzi, in charge of the creation of the work, explains that “There are no discrepancies between the sketch and the final realization. The artist left all the information to complete the work, and the work installed in Piazza Municipio was made following this information in detail. If he had been alive in the last days of the realization, maybe he could have guided us and pointed out some small corrections, who knows? But this nobody can know unfortunately.”

Gaetano Pesce in Naples, sons speak: "our father didn't want to offend or make an obvious work"

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