"Those who walk the earth know that the important thing is not to arrive, but to proceed, step by step. To walk the earth is to express our living in constant motion. Sometimes it is necessary to stop to rest or to think and to rejoice or to weep, and eventually to start walking again. To stop also to remember and relive the road traveled." (Luigi Veronelli)
It is almost superfluous to explain why this is the representative sentence of an exhibition dedicated entirely to such an eclectic figure as Luigi Gino Veronelli, an exhibition that interpreted his thought, life but above all his commitment not only at the oenological level, but also in the sphere of food, the products of the earth, with particular attention to oil, and the tools of the table.
The exhibition, hosted by the Milan Triennale, was articulated on both a chronological and thematic level. This interdisciplinary choice is intended to emphasize the dynamic and complex nature of this scholar's work, which has covered half a century of history.
A witness to the societal and economic changes of the 20th century, Veronelli remained rooted in his convictions throughout his life, never denying himself in the face of confrontation, but rather encouraging it. His name was and still is linked above all to wine, but this publisher, as well as journalist, as well as gastronome, has refined his personal food culture over the years, living with courage and concreteness the strength of his ideas, which have turned into open declarations of pursuing a policy aimed at opening up such a rural world to the media, of yesterday and today.
The rooms of the Milan Triennale dedicated to Veronelli have been designed to try to best render the idea of his legacy: from his choice to devote himself to publishing to his interest in cooking, from the documentation of his long trip to Italy to the reproduction of his cellar, from his not always easy relationship with RAI to his civil commitment against multinationals to ennoble typical communal products, and finally to his last great battle for oil.
Method, eclecticism, study, concreteness and an eye to the future in a single exhibition, dedicated to a great man, who placed the land and material culture at the center of his own life, operating in a perfectly framed historical era that profoundly marked his work.
Inaugurated on January 21, the exhibition will be hosted by the Milan Triennale until next February 22, and then move to Bergamo.
The strength of such an exhibition lies also in the multisensory experience proposed thanks to the technological support Vocal-it® One, an application that through QR codes allows the visitor to be accompanied along the entire path.
This ambitious project was promoted by the Luigi Veronelli Decennial Committee and Triennale di Milano, in collaboration with the municipality of Bergamo, the curatorship of Alberto Capatti, Aldo Colonetti and Gian Artura Rota, and the project accompaniment of Franco Origoni and Anna Steiner.
