Ischia, defacements and threats to artist for provocative action inside a church

In Forio, one of the main centers of Ischia, tempers have been heating up over an intervention by Salvatore Iacono, artist, activist and owner of Ischia Street Art Gallery, an open-air gallery designed to promote street art on the Campania island and beyond. Iacono, who had already starred a few days ago in an action in a supermarket to ask institutions for more attention to art and culture, last Friday placed six works by artist Mimmo Di Caterino inside the church of San Sebastiano in Forio. Iacono then photographed the works inside the church, sharing the images on social media.The idea of the owner of Ischia Street Art Gallery was to carry out an action with the intent of capturing attention on contemporary art and the situation of galleries, many of which are heavily affected by the Covid crisis.

The Ischia Street Art Gallery itself is in a serious situation, the press office explains, as are all the galleries, “closed since March 2020, a year in which the events sector has suffered quite extensive damage: the cancellation of public and private events, with the consequent closure of museums and art galleries, has caused enormous economic losses and the total standstill of a sector that no one is considering at the institutional level and for which, unlike in other areas, there are no refunds and compensation. Art and culture, completely sidelined, are left in the oblivion of this dark moment the world is experiencing, due to Covid-19 and the restrictions imposed by the government. Especially, art galleries are suffering the effects of the crisis and the months of closures imposed by the numerous DPCMs that have been going on since March last year and that do not give respite or hope to culture and especially to the art world.”

In this context, the gallery further explains, “fit the interventions of social denunciation implemented by Salvatore Iacono of Ischia Street Art: the first, a few weeks ago, had as its focus the Decò supermarket in Forio, where the gallerist placed 2 paintings between the shelves of food, bearing the hashtags #recoveryfund and #recoveryplan; the second took place in the church of San Sebastiano, immediately provoking the censorship of the intervention, followed by insults and threats aimed at the well-known gallerist.”

Photograph of the intervention by Iacono and Di Caterino

In fact, it happened that Iacono’s provocation moved several faithful to indignation, as well as aroused the disapproval of the parish priest, Don Emanuele Monte, who, the gallery reports, contemplated legal action against Iacono: his action, in fact, was interpreted as blasphemous and disrespectful to religion. Iacono immediately moved to respect the motives of the Catholic community, removing incriminated photographs and videos from his social pages: despite this, the personal accounts of Iacono and the Ischia Street Art Gallery, as well as the Facebook pages of some local newspapers that reported on the incident, were targeted, becoming the object of insults directed against Iacono himself. In addition, on the outside walls of the Ischia Street Art Gallery appeared inscriptions with threats thrown by unknown persons against the gallery owner, who was forced to protect himself by denouncing the incident.

“Mine was not a disrespectful and desecrating intervention against the faithful or the ecclesiastical world,” Iacono explains, “but rather a conceptual and symbolic, social and interactive intervention, a completely aesthetic intervention, in support of contemporary art in times of Covid19. Art comes out of the confines of the galleries, closed since March 2020 and subject to the continuous and now senseless restrictions imposed by the numerous DPCMs, and enters the church, that is, an open, free and safe place. I have withdrawn photos and videos from my socials, but this story still remains unbelievable! I can understand the censorship operated by the Church and its faithful against my speech, but to receive death threats from those who profess to be humble servants of God, is unconscionable! I doubt it is the good Lord speaking for them....”

“My gallery,” Iacono continued, “has been closed since March 2020, it’s been almost a year and I’m pulling ahead without government aid and relief. Both interventions, the one at Deco and this one at the Church, are the only way I have to denounce the situation in which I am forced to live, indeed survive! And provocation is the only weapon I have to amplify my discomfort and disappointment. The Church is a sacred place for me too, I knew that bringing art to this place would amplify my social action.... But it was not my intention to offend anyone!”

Pictured below: Iacono’s gallery daubed with threats.

Ischia, defacements and threats to artist for provocative action inside a church

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