Case d'Arte palermitane: tra futurismo e arti applicate

<p>In 1915 Giacomo Balla and Fortunato Depero, signing the Futurist manifesto Ricostruzione futurista dell’universo, extended the field of action of the Futurists to every aspect of everyday life. This first publication was followed by a series of programmatic texts that proposed, at least in theory, the ‘reconstruction’ of every sphere of contemporary living.  Thus the Case d’Arte were founded, veritable atelier-workshops where artists tried their hand at the most original creations - often working together - in the most diverse fields: from fashion to furniture, but also publishing, advertising and design tout court. Heirs to the Wagner’s ideal of Gesamtkunstwerk, the Futurists broke down the fences separating the ‘major’ and ‘minor’ arts. But if between Central and Northern Italy there were many Case d’Arte, in Southern Italy the reality was quite different: the only two Case d’Arte founded in Palermo were those of Pippo Rizzo and Vittorio and Gigia Corona (Cf. Crispolti, 1980; Ruta, 1985; Gueci, Troisi, 2018). Laying the foundations of the research on the previous studies carried out in this field, the project’s first objective is a concrete historical valorisation of Palermo’s second futurism, a field of research that has experienced moments of intense activity but which - despite this - still remains a topic explored only at the margins. Through an overview of that brief but intense period of creative fervour, the aim will be to restore the analogies of the work of Sicilian masters compared to the great names of futurism such as Depero, Balla and Prampolini, but above all to highlight their identifying characteristics of ‘Mediterranean-ness’ (Cf. Di Stefano, 1975, 1985; Ruta, 2012). Recognition through writings, exhibitions and works will make it possible to analyse its founding aspects and highlight the intrinsic limits of a provincial cultural reality .  </p>