Friendship and Solitude are the key words chosen for «I Dialoghi di Eoliè», which will open the program of the 4th edition of the Festival and the widespread exhibition «Eoliè24 Art Literature Society»under the artistic direction of Francesco Malfitano, on the red thread of contemporary visual art, poetry, philosophy and current events. The festival, promoted by the association «Un Sanpietrino», has a rich program that from Friday until Monday will animate the spaces of the magnificent Norman Benedictine Cloister of the Acropolis, the Teatro del Castello, the spaces of the “former prisons” of the Archaeological Museum, the Church of the Maddalena, the central square until it sinks into the seabed of the Secca di Capistello.
“To address the theme of friendship, of such a strong and generous bond that we are constantly searching for, throughout our lives, we believe it is necessary to delve into the thousand faces of that healthy solitude capable of laying the foundations for meeting others. It is no coincidence that in Sicily we say “Sulità Santità” – explains the artistic director Francesco Malfitano – What is friendship? A word so abused and often vilified. Sought after and desired. Elusive and yet so concrete. We are all now hyper-connected, friends, followers, but increasingly distant from the spontaneity of emotions and less available to share presence. With the protagonists of Eoliè 24 we will investigate from different artistic and cultural angles this short circuit between friendship and solitude that increasingly often overlap and merge”.
Great anticipation for the new conversation on the key themes of this edition with philosophers and writers Massimo Cacciari (whose latest book is «Metafisica concreta», for the Biblioteca filosofica Adelphi) and Marcello Veneziani (Saturday at 7:30 pm in the Teatro al Castello). On Monday 8th at 7:30 pm in the central square of Lipari, art historian Claudio Strinati will hold a lecture on friendship and solitude in the creative processes of the great artists of history, with a focus on Raphael. And again, the curator of the Eoliè exhibition Roberta Tosi will meet the theologian of art and beauty Jean Paul Hernandez for a conversation on the theme proposed from the privileged point of view of art: can solitude favor the birth of the work? Once upon a time, artists worked in workshops, among clients and apprentices, today? What is the relationship of the artist with his own work? And, from here, how much do the bonds that can be born count, if they count?
The program includes scenic readings by the poet and writer Davide Rondoni, who has chosen some texts by Gesualdo Bufalino, Eugenio Borgna and poets of the contemporary literary scene. The program includes a performance by the pianist and composer Carmelo Travia who presents, again this year, the first performance of an original theme written for the Festival.
«The stars will come to touch the earth» is the title, inspired by the verses of the poet Cesare Pavese, of the widespread exhibition, curated by the art historian Roberta Tosi, which, from Friday until August 5, will invade all the most suggestive places on the island. Five internationally renowned artists will deal with the theme of «friendship and solitude» in their works: one of the most important Russian artists of the 20th century, Emilia Kabakov, with her conceptual installations; the lights, water, salt, the very fine powder of eternalized and crystallized glass of the «Cenae» by the Catalan artist Joan Crous; the restlessness of the painted faces of the Milanese painter Paolo Maggis; the assemblages and visions of the sculptures of the Bergamo artist Dario Tironi.
And for all snorkeling enthusiasts, on the seabed of the Capistello reef, “Where Zephyr blows”, the site-specific installation by Alessandro La Motta: the artist’s sculptures lying on the seabed and anchored as if to suggest an underwater archaeology discovery.
The Eoliè Festival will award, together with the Globe Association for Climate, the first edition of the Magma Prize to the Strombolian artist Irene Lanza, whose works express her care for the sea and the beaches of her island, combining beauty, creativity and sustainability.