Vicenza: Illustrious Festival in the Basilica Palladiana with three exhibitions.

Since June 28, Illustri Festival has ignited the creativity of the city by exploring the thousand faces of the complexity of the world we live in.

“Drawing Complexity” it is, in fact, the theme of a sixth edition that inaugurates the second part of the programming with talks, events, workshops, exhibitions for a total of three months of "events and drawings".

So what happens between August and September?

The Basilica Palladiana returns to be the hub of the Illustri Festival, hosting, in its spaces, three of the six new exhibitions: Illustri, Saranno Illustri and Maestri Illustri in Basilica Palladiana, to which are added a personal exhibition by Francesco Chiacchio, an exhibition of illustrated plates for each of the ten issues of “THINGS explained well”, the paper magazine of the Italian online newspaper il Post, created in collaboration with il Post at Palazzo Cordellina, the representative office of the Bertoliana Civic Library, and the return of Mind the gap: 12 illustrators talk about STEAM women at Palazzo Thiene Bonin Longare.

The press preview of the exhibitions in the Basilica Palladiana was attended by the mayor Giacomo Possamai, the councilor for culture, tourism and attractiveness of the city Ilaria Fantin, the president of the Biblioteca Civica Bertoliana Alberto Galla, the curator and artistic director of Illustri Festival Francesco Poroli, and the operational director of Illustri Festival Cristina Malavolta.

"The Basilica Palladiana has always been the home of Illustri Festival and today we are in the space of the large hall to present the three new exhibitions that will be part of the lively festival that began at the end of June and will continue until the end of September - declared the mayor Giacomo Possamai -. In the Basilica we can take a journey into the world of illustration through 200 works while we can admire another 500 in other places in the historic center including the Gallerie di Palazzo Thiene belonging to the civic museum system and Palazzo Cordellina, home of the Bertoliana Library. But the festival also reaches Gallerie d'Italia, a long-time partner of this project, and Palazzo Bonin Longare for a total number of of 20 locations with 200 artists involved.

A festival that is growing more and more and that we will continue to host with enthusiasm.

«With Illustri we are managing to implement one of the objectives of this administration – said the councilor for culture, tourism and attractiveness of the city Ilaria Fantin –: the promotion of the creation of a network between cultural subjects that together have created a festival of the city for the city with a national and intentional importance that is particularly attractive to the younger generations towards whom it arouses curiosity but also interest for professional developments. There are many collateral events that involve all audiences without losing sight of the attention towards the community with the fundraising for the Association donna chiama donna through the Mind the Gap exhibition at Palazzo Thiene Bonin Longare and towards the environment and sustainability».

«The Bertoliana Library welcomes the Illustri Festival project, whose two exhibitions, quality cultural proposals, are hosted in the two rooms on the ground floor of Palazzo Cordellina – the president of the Bertoliana Civic Library Alberto Galla intervened – . The initiative fits perfectly with the policy we are implementing, which includes the recent revitalization of the courtyard of the building where the opening will take place with a DJ set and food truck and subsequently, on September 14 and 15, the market exhibition will be hosted. These are all ways, together with the recent placement of tables and chairs for the study, to open the Bertoliana to the city"

"It is the biggest Illustri Festival ever. In this edition we have expanded in time and space: three months of festival and many new locations that open their doors to illustration. An important challenge for Illustri that, in addition to coloring the city, wants above all to push the public to reflect on the theme of complexity and cultural tensions that cross our days", concludes Francesco Poroli, artistic director of the Festival.

The exhibitions in the Basilica Palladiana

The symbolic building of Vicenza designed by the architect Andrea Palladio is once again hosting three exhibitions scheduled from August 31st to September 29th: Illustri, with the exhibition of 11 of the most established and internationally successful Italian pencils; Saranno Illustri, 11 illustrious artists of tomorrow, at the beginning of their careers, but already with important recognitions and works; Maestri Illustri, a solo show dedicated to those who have been doing this job for a long time and have seen it evolve and grow, inspiring new generations.

This year the title of Maestro goes to Beppe Giacobbe, born in Milan in 53, an internationally renowned illustrator who has collaborated with the biggest names in the industry, from United Airlines to major publications such as the New York Times. His mastery has been recognized by international juries, his work is regularly selected in the major Annuals of American illustration and has won awards both in the USA and in Italy.

At Illustri Festival 2024 Beppe Giacobbe brings a new project as a preview that fits perfectly into the theme of the festival, complexity.

How much complexity lies behind something as infinitely small as an insect? Insects are the protagonists of the exhibition entitled “Autan”.

“Autan is the new World. A post-human World inhabited by the Insectum Sapiens”. With conceptual and symbolic images and a minimal and very powerful visual language, Beppe Giacobbe leads us by the hand into this new world, trying to force us to reflect on the time we live in today.

It remains active on the ground floor, in the Sala Zavatteri Illustri Hub, a space accessible for free during the opening hours of the Basilica where you can find everything you need to draw, write, play tic-tac-toe with cardboard plants or even just sit in an “illustrated garden”. The room is furnished with the installations of the call “The Paradise (in) city” in collaboration with Controversa, the first reversible box. The space, active since June, has been populated and inhabited by many children during the summer period.

New location for new exhibitions

To the prestigious locations that are already accompanying Illustri Festival, a new one is added that will give the opportunity, like all the others, to discover another marvelous historic building in the center of Vicenza: Palazzo Cordellina, in contra' Riale.

Here, until September 15, the Sala Sfingi and Sala Udienze will be the setting for “Asilo poetico”, a personal exhibition by the 43-year-old Florentine illustrator Francesco Chiacchio, who explores the ability of poetry to investigate the world, while the Sala Caffetteria hosts the exhibition “Things Designed Well”, born from the collaboration with the Post, an Italian online newspaper, edited and directed by Luca Sofri since 2010. COSE is a magazine in the form of a book: each issue is dedicated to a topic, to tell how it works, what it talks about, what are the Things to know and that are often taken for granted.

Director Sofri himself will be the guest of honor at a talk scheduled for September 26, at 18.30:XNUMX pm, in the Basilica Palladiana.

While the next day, September 27, at 20.30:XNUMX pm at Gallerie d'Italia – Vicenza Maria Sebregondi, co-founder of the Moleskine Company, will close a program of exciting talks that has seen, from June to today, alternating personalities of the caliber of Javier Jaén and Paolo Iabichino on the theme that Illustri festival is exploring: complexity.

Mind the gap: STEAM women told by women illustrators

Then there is the reconfirmation and return of a project that gave a lot of satisfaction in the 2022 edition of Illustri Festival.

In collaboration with Confindustria Vicenza, this year too at Palazzo Thiene Bonin Longare it is possible to visit the exhibition Mind the gap: 12 illustrators tell STEAM women, from September 27 to October 3.

Twelve illustrators will use their pencils to tell the stories of twelve women who throughout history have distinguished themselves for their commitment and perseverance in holding roles in the STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Arts Mathematic) field.

The selection of the subjects was entrusted to a group of boys and girls from the Liceo Don G. Fogazzaro and the works created will be the subject of a fundraiser in favor of the Donna Chiama Donna Association of Vicenza, which operates in many different ways, from the management of the anti-violence center of Vicenza, to the help desks in other municipalities of the province, to the project of education in mutual respect and the prevention of gender violence in schools.

“In progress”

The exhibitions already underway of Illustri Festival are at Gallerie d'Italia – Vicenza, until 27 October, Most illustrious Javier Jaén, a journey through paradoxes, irony, different visual languages ​​and the ability to represent the most complex realities with immediate and impactful images.

While in the hypogean rooms of Palazzo Thiene an exhibition is underway – and will be until September 29 – the AI ​​AM exhibition: I draw therefore I am. 100 unpublished works by as many illustrators who have put themselves on the line in creating their own self-portrait, as no AI would be able to do.

All the “shades” of Illustri Festival

Not only exhibitions, but also talks, market exhibitions, workshops for children.

The weekend of September 14th and 15th, from 10am to 20pm, the free-entry market exhibition will be held in the spaces of Palazzo Cordellina with live painting, live music, workshops and a food area.

Attention is also paid to the younger generations with workshops dedicated to children, scheduled every Sunday in September (8, 15, 22, 29) with free admission upon reservation.

From the treasure hunt with a final workshop in the Basilica Palladiana to the guided tour followed by a workshop at the exhibition Ai Am: Disegno dunque sono at Palazzo Thiene, up to the Family Lab “Il mondo allo specchio”, curated by the educational services of the Gallerie d'Italia – Vicenza, to discover the work of the illustrious Javier Jaén.

On September 21st, Illustri Day will be held: a day of meetings, workshops and portfolio reviews in the Basilica Palladiana to explore the infinite “and complex” world of illustration. A space dedicated above all to the youngest professionally interested in illustration or in creative professions with a broader scope.

IllustriOFF

Illustri is a widespread festival both for the numerous locations in which it is hosted, but also because it has always enriched its program with IllustriOFF, the parallel circuit of exhibitions, events and workshops to explore in the city.

Saturday and Sunday 7 8 September Contrà del Monte will host ILLUSTRIxVIOFF, an exclusive open air exhibition, open to the public and curated by Francesco Poroli for VIOFF GOLDEN FUTURE.

It brings together 20 selected works by professional illustrators and emerging young artists to tell the story of tradition and the future, to admire the excellence and new artistic trends. Thus telling the future starting from the past.

At Palazzo Cordellina, home of the Bertoliana Civic Library, from 22 to 29 September you can travel through the illustrated universe “among the childhoods” of the Vicenza illustrator Serena Mabilia with “D'incanto t'incontro”, a project /e·mò·ti·con/ illustrating the emotion conceived and curated by La Piccionaia, Theatre Production Center, for the Municipality of Vicenza, in collaboration with the Bertoliana Civic Library and Illustri.

From the September 21 Don't throw draw!, the personal exhibition-event by Giovanni Capra, winner of the call launched by Illustri in collaboration with NEW IS OVER!, a Vicenza-based sartorial upcycling project by Insieme cooperativa sociale, can be visited at Matteo Cibic Studio, in contra' Riale.

Instead, there will be 14 hours of Villain workshops, complex but not too much, scheduled for Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th September, led by Silvano Beggio at Lucky Brews.

The ten years of collaboration with Birra Ofelia will also be celebrated with the exhibition of the labels created specifically for the festival drink at the Ofelia Beerstrot, in Corso Fogazzaro, until the September 30.

Illustrious Festivals, in the name of the complexity that it champions this year, it will open the doors of the Basilica Palladiana to host, on Thursday 19 September, Fuck up Night: Francesco Poroli, Osvaldo Casanova, Lucilla Fazio, Andrea Lorenzon (Cartoni morti) will talk about professional failures and the lessons learned from them.

Finally, the Odeon Cinema, after an intense restoration work, reopens its doors to the public and, in addition to the cinema program, is transformed into a blank canvas with an illustration exhibition dedicated to its history and its importance for the city, ILLUSTRIxODEON.