Official recognition of Siena City, 20th Anniversary for World Heritage in Siena. since 1995.
Exhibition of Japan-Italy Educational Art Exchange in Siena Museum
May 15, 2015
Opening Ceremony
Ahead of the 150th anniversary of the Treaty of Amity and Commerce between Italy and Japan in 2016, an exhibition entitled Japan – Italy Educational Art for Children was held at the Sienna Museum between the 15th and 19th of May.
Sienna is known as the city of the early Italian Renaissance and produced famous Early Renaissance artists such as Duccio di Buoninsegna and Simone Martini, who helped develop the High Renaissance period,and it goes without saying that it is a city of art, which served as the foundation of High Renaissance in Florence.
For example, there is a passage in the famous‘The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors and Architects’ which states that even the master of Renaissance art Leonardo da Vinci had followed the example of the Sienese sculptor Jacopo della Quercia.
Other Sienese artists such as Beccafumi are famous around the world, and an exhibition of Japanese art in the Mecca of art, Sienna, is something Japanese artists couldconsiderably be proud of.
Furthermore, the art session held as a human activity of art and education, which filled the most significant part of the art exchange, was carried out by Japanese artists and Sienese children at the
Santa Maria della Scala.
Opening Ceremony
October 31, 2015, at 11:00
The opening ceremony of “The Art Exhibition – MAHORA – by Japanese Artists”, an event to be dedicated to the 400th anniversary of passing-away of Lord Tokugawa Ieyasu, was held.
On the day, calligrapher Hakuju Kuiseko, to dedicate to the 400th anniversary of passing-away of Lord Tokugawa Ieyasu and also to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, wrote words with a brush, in prayer for world peace, in tune with a performance of Japanese drums by Wadaiko Kids Yurikago (hereafter referred to as Yurikago), a group consisting of a select number of children from Tochigi Prefecture.
The two large characters the calligrapher wrote on a 90 by 181-centimeter paper were “Taihei” (peace).
Mr. Kuiseko remarked that the characters had come from his heart in earnest prayer for world peace, and he gave words of encouragement to the children of Yurikago.
After the calligraphy performance, Mr. Hisao Inaba, Chief Priest of Nikko Toshogu Shrine and the co-host,gave a speech to open the event, followed by the presentation of the catalogue of the dedicated artworks from the representative director of WAC to Chief Priest Inaba.
Mr. Nobutoshi Akao
Senior Advisor of WAC
Mr. Massimo Vedovelli
Town councillor of art and culture
Mr. Nobutoshi Akao,
Senior Advisor of WAC,
presented a list of collection of
the “Exhibition of Japanese Art
for Siena” to Mr. Daniele Sasson,
Director of Prisma Multimedia As
sociation.
Demonstration by Japanese artist.
Day 2
May 16, 2015
Art Session
The art session with Sienese children was an exchange of art that transcended the boundaries of language.
The Japanese artists and the children in the process of painting created a wordless language called art with their paintbrushes, without the aid of interpreters, and appeared to have conversed through painting, as the adults and children painted without uttering a word.
The themes of painting were ‘fellowship’ and‘friends’, and over 50 children were divided into three groups, and each of them painted on a 2-meter square vellum paper.
The sight of the fusion of colours gradually harmonising, while the individualities of the children clashed, was very interesting to see.
The finished works were richly colourful and dynamic,and made one realise that art is an important element of heart-to-heart interactions.
Museum tour given by Dr. Piergiacomo Petrioli
A guided tour of Renaissance art was given by Dr. Piergiacomo Petrioli for the Japanese artists who had travelled to Italy for the art exhibition.
Day1 (May 15, 2015)
At the Sienna Museum, the Dr. Petrioli gave commentaries apt for an art historian, based on the political background as well as the relationship between Sienna and Florence in the Renaissance periods, as exemplified by the mural by Ambrogio Lorenzetti.
Day3 (May 17, 2015)
The venue moved to Florence where the first tour of art was held in the largest museum in Florence.
Here, we viewed Renaissance artworks of each period, which developed in many cities, such as the Venetian school, considered as the Renaissance of colours, in addition to the Sienese and Florentine schools, while listening to Professor’s commentaries on the artworks of those periods.
In particular, Dr. Petrioli’s commentaries became more eloquent as we moved to the works of Duccio di Buoninsegna and Simone Martini, the artists that represent the Sienese school.
Their works were exhibited near the entrance.
At the next venue, the Galleria dell’Accademia, we viewed the statue of David by Michelangelo, which needs no introduction. David’s expression looked different when viewed from the left and the right, and the statue of David we are familiar with is that of the one viewed from the left, which makes his profile
appear to be that of a youthful and strong hero. It is said that the slight femininity of the profile, when viewed from the right, makes the statue interesting.
Uffizi Gallery
（May17,2015）
Uffizi Gallery
（May17,2015）
The last venue was the Palazzo Pitti.
The number of titles exhibited there seemed to hold sway over even those of the Uffizi.
Naturally, as with the Uffizi, Renaissance artworks of each period were exhibited and their display in the palace of magnificent splendor was overwhelming. The vast political might of the Medici that reached a peak of prosperity around the Renaissance periods was strongly evident.
If we were to state the significance of this art exchange, it is that the signpost to peace that art education is to guide the children to, is erected by culturati called artists.
We are determined to continue to devote ourselves to such international activities in future as well.
The Palazzo Pitti
(May17,2015)
The Galleria
dell’Accademia
The statue of David
by Michelangelo
(May17,2015)
Period
15th-19th May 2015
Venue
Museo Civico di Siena
Certification
Comune di Siena
Sponsor
General Incorporated Association World Art and Culture exchange(WAC)
Supervisor
Dr. Piergiacomo Petrioli, Director of branch office in WAC Italy
Nominal Support
Ambasciata del Giappone in Italia
Cooperation
Museo Civico di Siena / Liceo Caselli Siena
Publicity
“bun-ten” FINESSE Co.,Ltd