On Sunday 15 October, in the entrance hall of Palazzo Sarcinelli in Conegliano (TV), the exhibition “VENEZIA 1602 – The Spice Route” will be inaugurated, the contemporary art collection paying tribute to the anniversary of the birth of Venice.
The entire exhibition has already been presented in the lagoon itself on 25 March at H10 Palazzo Canova; in effect, this second date is the presentation on the mainland which, over 50 days, will be open to visitors in the Veneto hinterland. FREE event open to the public.
The artistic showcase was welcomed with great enthusiasm by the Municipality of Conegliano, attentive to identity-based cultural projects, which, on the occasion of the major exhibitions at Palazzo Sarcinelli, wanted to include something that would evoke the area, with ten works by ten artists who, through their vision, developed this year’s theme: “the spice route”.
The count of 1,600 years since the birth of the lagoon city began in 2021 and has become an artistic project that offers a cue for reflection on the future of art in Venice. 1600+ is nothing more than the annual progressive number of the artistic activity planned in Venice for the coming years by NEXT, the art section of the Venetian association NEXT. The aim is to contribute with beauty and creativity, becoming active participants in the contemporary artistic community. Year after year, the projects will be enriched and named by the sequential number (1601, 1602, 1603…) that recalls their ongoing cultural contribution; each year, artists from several fields are selected: from painting and graphic art to sculpture and installation.
The ten artists, who will represent the theme, have each created a painting using one or more spices as they wish, mixing them with the paint, applying them to the still-fresh work or in another way, as best suggested by the artist’s inventiveness. The 2023 theme of “THE SPICES” was chosen inspired by the trade that Venice had since the times of the Serenissima Republic;
each artist will not necessarily be linked to the spice itself but to the concept that the spice expresses and represents: for centuries, the spice trade was also a means that made it possible for different cultures to come into contact and influence one another, helping to enrich the heritage of art and beauty that we all admire today.
– The novelty and exceptional nature of this exhibition lies in its originality – explains NEXT president Daniele Cellini and curator of the exhibition – in fact 1600+ is the contemporary art exhibition that encourages artists of our time to make their contribution to art.
With this 1602 we want to be culturally active and not just spectators; after all, until now, in these past 16 centuries, we have seen works by great masters that we can still admire in museums today, and who knows whether in the next 1600 years a future Tiepolo, Canaletto, Giorgione or Bellini may be hiding among the artists who have the opportunity to express themselves in our project.
The theme “The Spice Route” refers to the history of the Serenissima Republic: a subject that draws on the past in order to be reinterpreted in a contemporary key. Thinking about entering the exhibition and knowing that every work has been physically mixed with spices makes it clear how deeply one delves into artistic research. Elena Cesca, NEXT’s spice expert, continues: – it is a pleasure to be hosted in Conegliano, because it gives us the opportunity, as local associations, to carry forward identity-based cultural projects with great passion and determination.
The exhibition will begin on 15 October with the ribbon-cutting ceremony and will remain open to the public for 50 days, with free admission, until Sunday 3 December.
All the works can be viewed via a dedicated QR code. The artists taking part are: Lucia Zamburlini, Stiven Frarè, Nicole Battiston, Cristina Meotto, Vanessa Modafferi, Andrea Pagotto, Valentina Vendrame, Pino Martello, Michalis Dolapsakis and Giacomo Gerin
Curator: Daniele Cellini
Palazzo Sarcinelli, via XX Settembre 132, 31015 Conegliano (TV).
For all info: culture and tourism office 0438 413316 as well as the Facebook page of the NEXT Association
www.fb.com/nextassociazione and the website www.associazionenext.it
