On Sunday 23 November, a group exhibition will open at the Galleria Amici dell’Arte, attended by around 30 artists. A solidarity initiative towards the people affected by the June 2024 disaster
The title is: ‘Artists in Brissago for Alta Vallemaggia’. It is not a film, it is not a book, but, as the word ‘artists’ suggests, it is an exhibition. A collective. But it is not an exhibition like the others, nor a collective one like the others. It is an overview of a decade of history of the Galleria Amici dell’Arte, a real cultural institution in Brissago, which promotes painters and sculptors, offering them a showcase and visibility that they would not otherwise have. It is an initiative of solidarity with the people affected by the disaster of June 2024. The title could therefore be: ‘When the Lake helps the Mountain’.
But let's get to the point: Sunday, November 23, at 16.00 the exhibition will open its doors to the public, with the vernissage in the new headquarters of the Gallery, on the ground floor of Casa Branca Baccalà. The exhibition, in which about thirty artists who have exhibited in Brissago in recent years take part, will last until January 3. The proceeds from the sale of the works will be donated to the Association for the Reconstruction of Bavona and Lavizzara.
“Traditionally – explains the president, Carolina Marcacci Rossi – the latest exhibition at the Galleria Amici dell’Arte is for charitable purposes. This year, we have therefore decided to organise a special exhibition, allocating the proceeds to the population affected by the disaster of June 2024. We have contacted the artists who have exhibited their works in our gallery over the last few years and some thirty of them have enthusiastically and willingly joined the initiative. Each will propose one or more works. In the event of a sale, the proceeds or part thereof, depending on the artists’ choices, will be donated to the official account for the reconstruction of Bavona and Lavizzara.’
Mayor Marcacci Rossi: ‘Art and culture, a bridge between past, present and future”
In addition to the authorities of Brissago, the vernissage will also be attended by the deputy mayor of Cevio Romana Rotanzi. There will be, of course, at the ceremony the mayor of Brissago, Veronica Marcacci Rossi.
“I believe that culture and art, in their various forms and expressions, are fundamental elements for communities, especially in the face of the risks of homologation and flattening linked to globalisation. Art and culture are human expressions that speak to our spirit, that communicate with each other, and that underline the uniqueness of the individual in an increasingly uniform world. They are also a bridge between past, present and future, and in this sense I hope that the new generations will know how to be passionate about the promotion of art as did and do those who gave life to the Gallery. Finally, a special applause for having organised the upcoming exhibition, which brings together the artists who have exhibited their works in Brissago over the years and on the other hand lends a hand to those who have been struck by the catastrophe’.
The mayor also points out that volunteering, for this and other associations that operate in a small community such as Brissago, is fundamental: “This is why it is important to be able to count on new figures to make themselves available to keep our country alive and proactive”.
The municipality of Palmieri: “A country without culture is a dead country”
This was echoed by his colleague from Municipio Ottavio Palmieri, head of the Dicastery for Culture: “I say it and repeat it to the point of exhaustion: A country without culture is a dead country. The Friends of Art therefore deserve sincere applause, not only for this latest initiative, but for their entire history and commitment. The Association was founded in Brissago at the end of the 1970s on the initiative of a group of people interested in art, including names that deserve to be mentioned: the sisters Verena and Betty Knobel, Tina Stolz, the lawyer Adriano Conti Rossini, Giancarlo Kuchler, who for many years was mayor of Brissago, the painter Claudio Baccalà ... And, of course, those who are still active today and continue to work dedicating their time to the Association, such as Delia Pantellini and Giuseppe Rossi, who was its first president’.
Promoting culture is a task and a fundamental value, adds Palmieri: “Today our thanks go to the current President Carolina Marcacci Rossi and to all the committee members and volunteers who make themselves available for the good of the community, promoting artists from Brixen and beyond, in the new headquarters of Casa Branca Baccalà. If we then think of the gesture of solidarity linked to the last exhibition in 2025, the proceeds of which will be allocated to the Valmaggese population affected by the disaster, as head of the Dicastery for Culture of our municipality I can only consider myself even more proud of the work of the Friends of Art’.
“We always propose six exhibitions a year – explains the President of Galleriua, Carolina Marcacci Rossi –: We start in March and end with the sixth, which is intended for charity. Fortunately, we can count, in addition to the members of the committee, on a dozen volunteers, who allow us to open the room to the public. The population of Brissago is very generous towards us, we receive many donations of support, which are fundamental for us, and we would also like more Brissaghesi to visit our exhibitions. I hope that the new headquarters in the prestigious Casa Branca Baccalà will attract more visitors and the first indications are already comforting. In any case, I am sure that the exhibition that will open on 23 November will also be an opportunity to meet and promote our beloved country.”