As in previous years, this year Palazzo Bentivoglio in Bologna hosts a contemporary artist in its garden, inviting the public at sunset to discover an unusual corner of the place. After the project dedicated to John Giorno and Ugo Rondinone in 2023 and the robotic performance by Riccardo Benassi entitled Ultralove, last summer, the appointment is now from 11 to 21 June for eight evenings of screenings of Icarus (2020-2021) by Giorgio Andreotta Calò.
Shot in December 2020 inside a long-abandoned Butterfly Pavilion, located in the zoological complex of Emmen in the Netherlands and soon to be demolished, the film moves between reality and fiction. It documents the activity of a colony of moths reintroduced by the artist into the abandoned building, following the words and gestures of the entomologist Enzo Moretto and the young self-taught Bart Coppens. The myth of Daedalus and Icarus is evocatively reflected in the relationship between master and apprentice, as well as in the metamorphic cycle of lepidopterans attracted by artificial light at night.
At Bentivoglio Palace, Icarus will be screened in a disused structure destined for dismantling, located in a recently acquired and not yet restored portion of the garden, in resonance with the film's original location. For the occasion, the space has been transformed into a large aviary, inside which Andreotta Calò has installed dozens of moth cocoons that will complete their metamorphosis during the screening days.
Visitors will also be able to admire the work of Ericailcane, already partially visible beyond the surrounding wall. This is the The Rabbit of Borgo Street, created after a long dialogue between the artist and Palazzo Bentivoglio. The work, about eight meters high and composed of five panels applied to the wall, will be accompanied by a publication currently in progress, which will tell its story.
The garden will be open to the public from Wednesday to Saturday, from 20:00 pm to 23:00 pm.