In Naples a public art installation by Gaetano Pesce

On October 9 in Naples the public art installation "Tu si 'na cosa grande" was inaugurated, conceived by the great master Gaetano Pesce. This monumental work is part of the Contemporary Naples program, strongly desired by Mayor Gaetano Manfredi and curated by Vincenzo Trione, councilor for contemporary art and museum activities. The project aims to reaffirm Naples as a vital and creative center of contemporary art, with the involvement of internationally renowned artists, such as Michelangelo Pistoletto and Francesco Vezzoli.

 

 

The 2024 edition, funded by the Campania Region, sees Gaetano Pesce as the author of the latest installation, which represents a personal tribute to the Neapolitan city. His work, not conceived as a testament but rather as an act of love, is composed of two sculptures that dialogue with each other: a huge 12-meter-high Pulcinella dress , illuminated internally during the night, and a large red heart of 5 meters, pierced by a metal arrow. This double installation symbolizes the deep affection that Pesce had for Naples and its Campania roots, in particular Sorrento, the city of origin of his paternal grandparents.

 

 

The work, curated by Silvana Annicchiarico, is in Piazza Municipio in Naples and reflects the central themes of Pesce's poetics: the importance of the feminine, the use of contemporary materials, the aesthetics of imperfection and attention to the centrality of the body, understood not only in ergonomic terms but also in sensory and emotional terms. The heart (a popular symbol of love and attachment) and the dress of Pulcinella (which recalls ingenuity and adaptability) embody the essence of the city and its spirit.

 

 

With this work, Pesce once again manages to combine high and popular culture, conceptuality and sentiment, giving Naples a creation that is a perfect synthesis of memory, identity and urban vision. The installation is on view until December 19, 2024 and, at the end of the exhibition in Piazza Municipio, one of the two sculptures that compose it, "the heart", at the artist's behest it will remain in Naples, becoming part of the city's heritage.