LIFE, KNOWLEDGE, JOY. Light in European art and architecture

Life, knowledge, joy is the title of the meeting designed to reflect on light and its variations in the fields of European art and architecture, introduced by Mons. Timothy Verdon, priest and director of the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo and with speeches by: Giovanni Serafini, art historian; Filippo Rossi, artist; Marco Magni, architect.

Giovanni Serafini opens the debate, with a contribution on the theme of light in Western art of the seventeenth century. Starting from the cultural context where light is understood as a physical phenomenon, object of study of the “new philosophies” and symbol of the spiritual world, or rather of the light of glory that dazzles the great mystics, two pillars of the art of the time will be introduced: Bernini and Caravaggio. In particular, the subject of the discussion will be the study of light in Bernini as an image of the ineffable Divine and, at the same time, which reveals art as an ephemeral representation; finally, light in Caravaggio will be treated as an optical phenomenon, a metaphor for the theological discussions of the time on the relationship between grace and free will. The intervention will continue with a declination of the theme of Grace in the art of George de La Tour and, in conclusion, some brief references to the light in the art of the two major (and complementary) Florentine “devoted” painters of the seventeenth century: Dolci and Volterrano.

Afterwards, Filippo Rossi will analyze through some of his works the light, rendered by gold leaf, under different aspects: Forgiveness, Salvation, Gift, Faith, Love, Gratitude and Contemplation. According to Rossi, in fact, the artist’s task is to transmit and share the Light that welcomes, makes your imperfections shine and heals until they become pure Beauty.

Finally, Marco Magni will conclude the debate with a speech entitled Light in museum architecture. Through a brief synthesis of projects by Studio Guicciardini & Magni Architetti, from the installations of the National Museum of Oslo to the Galleries of the Richelieu National Library in Paris, up to the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo in Florence, the choices on the use of light in museum architecture, in the dichotomy between artifice and naturalness, between instances of conservation, enhancement and hospitality.

GIOVANNI SERAFINI

is an art historian who lives and works in Florence. He graduated from the University of Florence with a thesis on Benozzo Gozzoli and Ciceronian oratory and then obtained a doctorate at the University of Siena with a research project on Carlo Dolci and his cultural environment. Since 2015 he has been employed as manager of the internal catalog of the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore and since 2010 he has been assistant to Mons. Timothy Verdon. He specializes in sacred iconology of the Tuscan 15th and 17th centuries. He has ten years of experience as a lecturer and convention holder and has published numerous studies: scientific articles, essays, monographic books and has curated some international exhibitions and conferences.

FILIPPO ROSSI

(1970), has exhibited his works since 1992. After training in the life drawing school at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence, he graduated in Art History at the University of Florence. Since 1997 he has taught Studio Art at Stanford University. He has exhibited regularly since 1994. He works as a site-specific artist for private individuals and public bodies. For over 20 years he has also been developing issues relating to the sacred. After having created the Maternity Chapel at the Careggi Hospital in Florence, in 2010 he created the first Italian interfaith classroom at the Nuovo Meyer pediatric hospital in Florence. In 2011 he was called by the Florence Cathedral Foundation to compete for an ambo for the Cathedral. In 2012 he was at the Derix Glass Studio in Frankfurt (Germany) to translate some of his paintings into stained glass windows. He works both for Italy and for the United States, China and Korea. He regularly holds training workshops in Italy and the USA. Lecturer, he was also invited at Yale University in New Haven (Connecticut) to present a report on the meaning of his art. Thanks to a long and fruitful period of research, in which he experimented with new and chemically made materials such as foams and extruded polystyrene, he also recovered the use of natural products such as paper, jute canvas, wood, often managing to give life to real ‘abstract icons’. What he seeks in his commitment is a request to pause in front of the image, so that the work, initially fascinating in terms of colors and composition, also acquires an ‘other-sense’ upon deeper reading, creating an intimate conversation, almost a dialogue between the artist-creature and its Creator. His works are silent and dry, and in them the only concession to opulence is the use of gold, which is counterbalanced by the ‘poverty’ of the other colors and materials. His works have often been published, even on the cover, in volumes published by Mondatori, San Paolo, Electa, and Àncora Editrice, and his work has been documented in national newspapers such as «La Repubblica» and «La Nazione». He writes and collaborates with specialized journals of criticism and art history. He has published catalogs of various artists and essays on artistic techniques. In 2018 he created the brand “Magnifice Filippo Rossi” which contains all his artistic production. His activity is present on the website www.magnifice.it as well as on Instagram, Facebook and on his YouTube channel “Magnifice Filippo Rossi”.

MARCO MAGNI

(1962) graduated in Architecture in Florence in 1989, together with Piero Guicciardini, with a thesis on urban planning, supervised by Adolfo Natalini.
He deals with photography and issues related to design, image and their interrelationships.
Between 1990 and 1995 he collaborated with Adolfo Natalini on numerous architectural projects.
The Guicciardini & Magni Architetti studio was founded in 2003 and mainly deals with cultural heritage, operating in the fields of Architecture, Restoration and Design, and in particular with museum projects, realizing over 50 museums and 90 temporary exhibitions.
Among the numerous museum projects we mention: The Museo Dell’Opera del Duomo and the Museo Galileo in Florence (with Adolfo Natalini), the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo in Pisa, the Caftans section and the new Porcelain museum in the Palace of Topkapi in Istanbul, the installations of the new National Museum in Oslo and the Richelieu National Library in Paris.
Among the exhibitions held: “Youth of Michelangelo” in Palazzo Vecchio, “Giotto” in the Galleria dell’Accademia in Florence, Bernini” and “Desiderio da Settignano” at the Bargello, “Gianfranco Ferrè” at the Textile Museum in Prato, ” Les Choses” at the Louvre.
Marco Magni taught at the Industrial Design Course of the University of Florence and at the IUAV in Venice.