Vezza Family Founds Public Art Project In Italian Monastery Ruins

(MENAFN- USA Art News) Italian entrepreneurs Sandra Vezza and her son Charley Vezza are launching Fondazione Vezza, a new contemporary art initiative set to open in northern Italy next September. Located in Monforte d'Alba, within the Langhe wine region of Piedmont and approximately 60 kilometers southeast of Turin, the project will transform the ruins of a medieval monastery into a public art hub.

The duo plans to establish an art trail through the woodland on Colle San Pietro hill over the next decade. The project will be inaugurated next autumn with two large-scale, site-specific works by American artist Kathleen Ryan and Italian sculptor Alessandro Pessoli. The trail will encompass the ruins of the San Pietro monastery, an early medieval complex first documented in 1014.

Flavio del Monte, formerly the director of institutional relations at Milan's Massimo de Carlo gallery, will oversee Fondazione Vezza. A project statement outlines the curatorial vision:“Each year, one or more artists will be invited to engage with the site, its woodland, its paths, existing architecture and history. Over approximately ten years, the works will shape a route that will continue to grow and change without losing the site's original character.”

Sandra and Charley Vezza will finance the production of the artworks, though budget details remain confidential. A spokesperson confirmed that the foundation will own the pieces, stating:“Yes, they will be installed permanently onsite. The target audience is really everyone, the widest possible audience.” The site will be open to the public with free admission. The project statement adds that“With its opening in 2027, the Foundation will begin a long-term exploration of the relationship between contemporary art, the landscape, and the Vezza family's vision, shaped by the artists invited to contribute to the site over time.” Supporters of the project include the Comune di Monforte, the Comune di Milano, and Gagosian Gallery.

In 2022, Sandra and Charley Vezza established the Italian Radical Design Group, a Barolo-based company dedicated to“preserving and promoting historic Italian design brands,” according to its website. That same year, the group acquired Memphis Milano, the post-modern design collective from the 1980s. In 2012, the Vezzas purchased Gufram, an Italian radical design brand founded in the 1960s known for its pop art-inspired furniture.

Source: The Art Newspaper

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