Sauro Cavallini’s statue Multiple Ballet was inaugurated today in piazza del Duomo as a part of an event hosted by the Sauro Cavallini Study Centre. Titled Ballet for Peace by Sauro Cavallini: A hug for a world without borders, the ceremony took place in the presence of deputy mayor and councillor for culture, Alessia Bettini; president and director of the Sauro Cavallini Study Center, Teo Cavallini; and curator Maria Anna Di Pede.
The exhibition marks the first time that a piece of contemporary art has been displayed in the piazza by the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore. The artist’s experience of the horrors of the Second World War and imprisonment in the Gradaro camp near Mantua profoundly marked Cavallini’s life. When he began to practise sculpture, the nightmares took shape in his first works of art.
Created in 1984, Cavallini’s 700 kilogram bronze masterpiece, which is formed of figures choreographed into harmonious dialogue with one another, conveys themes of peace and human brotherhood. Florence’s famous piazza is the ideal place for Cavallini’s dancing figures, says the director of the Sauro Cavallini Study Center, Maria Anna Di Pede, the effect being to establish a “harmonious contrast between the sinuous shapes of Cavallini’s people and the rigour of the architecture of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, between the colour of the bronze and the whiteness of the marbles, between the graceful movement of the dance and the severe geometry of the square.”
In its new context, Cavallini’s statue stands as an expression of freedom and movement without space constraints. Its metaphorical embrace of peace is sadly still reflective of a dramatic modern context, states Eugenio Giani, president of the Tuscany Region: “It is a work of extraordinary value, whose message is particularly strong and timely, in these months marked by the war in Ukraine, but also by many other situations of human rights violations, from Iran to central Africa. Ultimately, it is not only a dutiful tribute to a great artist, but also the best way to send a strong message through the power of art.”
The sculpture will remain located in piazza del Duomo until April 11, 2023.
