Not only a personal artistic conception, but also local culture and traditions, cultured literary quotes, myths and legends that have crossed history and continue to challenge time. All this converges in “Mefitis” by Gennaro Vallifuoco, the exhibition hosted by the Monumental Complex Former Bourbon Prison of Avellino from 5 to 29 March 2022, curated by Generoso Bruno and Augusto Ozzella.
“We European artists of the Mediterranean area have a great responsibility: belonging to an important history and an ancestral memory – declares Gennaro Vallifuoco – And when the artist fails to act within this responsibility, he risks being superficial , while paying attention to the reality and language of the era in which he lives. I think “Mefitis” is a multilingual exhibition, because it has the ability to put ancient history and new media in sync ”.
Mefitis was an Italic goddess, historically associated with the sulphurous lake in the Ansanto Valley, a place shrouded in mysterious charm. This small lake, which boils due to the emissions of sulfur gas, is indicated by Virgil in the Aeneid as one of the entrances to the Underworld. The strong link between the works on display and the territory that hosts it is also made clear by the choice of materials. The artist combines the mud and clay, obtained precisely from the Ansanto Valley, with the white thread of the Pizzillare embroidery of the School of Tombolo di Santa Paolina. Vallifuoco experiments with new artistic paths, using woods, jute and linen cloth, asphalt and liquid sheath, enamels, majolica terracotta and gold leaf.
“The artist, identifying in Mefite the connecting door between the sensitive and the beyond mundane, moves his elaboration through contrasting lines of light and shadow – declares Generoso Bruno, art critic and curator of the exhibition – Plus the sign the closer to the truth of matter, the more difficult its codification appears in the infinite decomposition of the pictorial planes “.
The exhibition itinerary consists of about 70 unpublished works, created between 2007 and 2022. The visit is marked by the sound composition created by Marco Messina and Sacha Vinci, based on the noise of the wooden spindles used for the pillow and the audio recordings made near the mephitic spring.
“Mefitis represents for CosmoArt the first event of the year after a long phase in which the art world has been stopped due to the pandemic – declares Augusto Ozzella, organizer of the event – I hope that Mefitis can also mark the end of a dark period, in which restrictions prevented the enjoyment of live art. I think this exhibition adds a further step to Gennaro Vallifuoco’s artistic research, to which a relationship of friendship and professional collaboration that has continued for years binds me ”.