Edited by Alberto Mattia Martini

23.05 – .07.2024

Opening Thursday 23 May at 7 pm

Galleria Giovanni Bonelli is pleased to present the exhibition Per Grazia Ricevuta, curated by Alberto Mattia Martini. A group exhibition that aims to explore and reinterpret the theme of the former Voting in a contemporary context: a correlation between history and present, relating Tradition and modernity.

Votive offerings, Didi-Huberman reminds us, are mysterious and fascinating objects, which could be associated with ghosts; they are steeped in history and spirituality, they act as tangible witnesses of the human experiences of gratitude, protection, miracle, and survival.

The artists present at the exhibition, through their personal styles and languages ranging from painting to offer a unique and personal perspective, contributing to a collective narrative that aims to stimulate discussion and interaction through the legacy inherent in votive offerings.

The exhibition is configured as a reflection on the relationship between tradition and innovation, between the sacred and the sacred profane, between the tangible and the transcendent. Contemporary votive offerings, while maintaining their value symbolic, move from purely religious roots to embrace a more secular and Universal.

As the curator Alberto Mattia Martini states: “In the exhibition, the ancient tradition has merged with new languages and forms of reflection and contemporary artistic expression, allowing the creation of works inspired not only by the concept of devotion, but exploring broader themes, such as identity, politics, society and the environment. The votive object from matter, becomes the emblem of the relationship with other dimensions and addresses articulated and delicate issues such as life, illness, death or rebirth, both from a universal and individual point of view: a symbol that becomes a means to express universal emotions or individual narratives. The exhibition By grace received in its contemporary “revelation” represents a bridge between the past and the present, between tradition and innovation; it interprets a symbolic expression that is the manifestation of our continuous and constant search to be able to give meaning and therefore hope to existence.”

To underline the concept, the exhibition setting becomes crucial, which evokes the traditional way in which where the votive offerings are usually placed: an evocative composition, which recalls the atmosphere of the churches, where “allegorical artifacts” create a sort of organic accumulation, a temporal stratification typical of places of worship, where the votive elements of thanksgiving andoverlapping each other, creating a relationship of complex and profound dialogue. The visitor he thus finds himself immersed in an experience that invites reflection and contemplation. At it context, the ex-voto becomes a means through which artists urge us to explore relationships with the sacred, fortune and destiny, offering a profound reflection on the human condition and the search for comfort and hope.

Works by: Guido Airoldi, Maddalena Ambrosio, Stefano Arienti, Gabriele Arruzzo, Yuval Avital, Mattia Barbieri, Mirko Baricchi, Matteo Basilè, Matteo Bergamasco, Alessandro Bergonzoni, Thomas Berra, Bertozzi&Casoni, Andrea Bianconi, Lorenzo Brivio, Nicolò Bruno, Michele Bubacco, Luca Caccioni, Chiara Calore, Anna Capolupo, Nicola Caredda, Linda Carrara, Valeria Carrieri, Antonio Catelani, Andrea Chiesi, Marco Cingolani, Gianluigi Colin, Giacomo Cossio, Fabrizio Cotognini, Rudy Cremonini, Vanni Cuoghi, Sabrina D’Alessandro, Aldo Damioli, Alberto De Braud, Leonida De Filippi, Francesco De Grandi, Francesco De Molfetta, Silvano De Pietri, Marta Dell’Angelo, Mario Dellavedova, Aron Demetz, Marco Demis, Pino Deodato, Nicola Di Caprio, Fulvio Di Piazza, Roberto Dolzanelli, Tamara Ferioli, Enzo Fiore, Sergio Fiorentino, Francesco Fossati, Giovanni Frangi, Maurizio Galimberti, Michelangelo Galliani, Omar Galliani, Daniele Galliano, Laura Giardino Robert Gligorov, Giuseppe Gonella, Domenico Grenci, Ester Grossi, Franco Guerzoni, Agnese Guido, Audrey Guttman, Silvia Inselvini, Filippo La Vaccara, Franceso Lauretta, Giovanni Manfredini, Lorenzo Mariani, Bruno Marrapodi, Franco Marrocco, Luciano Massari, Andrea Mastrovito, Marco Mazzoni, Paolo Migliazza, Enrico Minguzzi, Kazumasa Mizokami, Concetta Modica, Elena Modorati, Tomoko Nagao, Silvia Negrini, Marco Pace, Silvia Paci, Mimmo Paladino, Robert Pan, Alessandro Papetti, Paola Pezzi, Paolo Pibi, Alex Pinna, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Luigi Presicce, Massimo Pulini, Pierluigi Pusole, Gherardo Quadrio Curzio, Alfredo Rapetti, Alberto Rastelli, Giotto Riva, Brigitta Rossetti, Elisa Rossi, Laboratorio Saccaccardi, Nicola Samorì, Davide Serpetti, Marta Sesana, Giuseppe Stampone, Ema Stokholma, Luca Trevisani, Wainer Vaccari, Vedovamazzei, Nicola Verlato, Flaminia Veronesi, Dany Vescovi, Fabio Viale, Velasco Vitali. With the extraordinary participation of Dino Buzzati with one of his Ex-votos, courtesy of the Heirs.