Venturino Venturi Mater

The exhibition "Venturino Venturi mater," part of the program of the celebrations for the Seicentenary of theIstituto degli Innocenti by the Institute and the City of Florence in collaboration with the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore-is spread across three prestigious venues and recounts a long work of investigation by the artist, who explored and alternated techniques, materials and styles, focusing on the search for depth and expressive authenticity.the Penelope room of Palazzo Vecchio and the Sala delle Cantorie of the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo host the works that Venturino Venturi has dedicated to a theme dear to the artist since the dawn of his human and artistic maturity: the theme of motherhood, the result of a research that starts from the observation of the everyday datum and then goes back to its ancestral meanings of renewal and rebirth.

The exhibition, curated by Lucia Fiaschi, Stefano Filipponi, and Antonio Natali, opened on Feb. 21, 2019, and will close on May 19.

"This exhibition gives us the opportunity to celebrate two anniversaries, namely the centenary of Venturino Venturi's birth in 1918 and the six centuries since the founding of theIstituto degli Innocenti in 1419," comments the president of theIstituto degli Innocenti, Maria Grazia Giuffrida, " by reflecting on a theme, motherhood, in an ideal place because here for six centuries we have been involved in welcoming, caring for, educating and raising children. The exhibition also gives the opportunity to dwell on the universal values and archetypes of motherhood, Venturino Venturi's works are related to and in dialogue with the works of artists of the past who represented the ideals and "culture of childhood" that were meant to guide the attentions of those who cared for children on a daily basis. Visiting this exhibition, set up in the spaces of the Museo degli Innocenti , prompts us to think about motherhood in so many different declinations, in the different meanings related to the care of the little ones and the investment of sensitivity, attention and energy in favor of respecting their rights and their future. This cultural initiative is part of the program of our Seicentenary, which will be full of meetings, conferences, exhibitions, performances, it is the first major event after the opening ceremony of the celebrations held ten days ago in the presence of the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella."

"Venturino Venturi's exhibition," explains Giovanni Palumbo, director general of theIstituto degli Innocenti , "introduces an important novelty thanks to an agreement born out of a fruitful collaboration between theIstituto degli Innocenti and the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore: in fact, for the first time there will be a single ticket (full 18 euros, reduced 6 euros) to enter the Museo degli Innocenti and the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo. With this initiative, theIstituto degli Innocenti and the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore are launching a new collaboration that aims to promote the historical identities and cultural heritages of the two institutions and to give visibility to the activities of the present. We are beyond pleased to have been able to realize, in the year of the Institute's Seicentennial, this exhibition, which makes use of a project shared by three important institutions of our city such as the Institute, the City of Florence and the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore."

The joint ticket proposal is valid from the opening date of the exhibition until December 31, 2019. The ticket is sold at the ticket offices of the two museums, is of the open type (date and time slot open), and is valid 72 hours from the first entry into either museum.

The exhibition is made possible thanks to the support of F.I.L.A. Fabbrica Italiana Lapis ed Affini (special supporter), a partner in the educational proposal of the Museo degli Innocenti and La Bottega dei Ragazzi, and CONstruire srl, with the organizational coordination of MUS.E.