The Lancaster Museum of Art and History (MOAH) invites the community to experience its newest exhibition—Estate Italiana. MOAH will kick off the show with a free opening reception 4 to 6 p.m. tomorrow where the public can view the exhibition and meet each artist.
Estate Italiana (Italian Summer) will be on display tomorrow through Oct. 22. The exhibition is part of a cultural exchange program between the Lancaster Museum and ART1307, an arts institution headquartered in Naples, Italy. The exchange began in 2015 when ART1307 hosted an exhibition originating at MOAH. This summer’s exhibition features a breadth of work including paintings, sculptures, video installations, and murals.
Estate Italiana celebrates the rich and vibrant history of Italian artistic tradition by showcasing seven contemporary Italian artists. Many contemporary Italian artists feel pressured by the weight of the legacy of such masters as Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, or Raphael—feeling much like the children of celebrities who must live in the shadow of a famous parent.
Estate Italiana Guest Curator Cynthia Penna remarks, “There is no doubt that the great and immense history of Italian art hovers like a heavy and complex cloud over artists today.” ART1307 artists Alex Pinna, Antonella Masetti, Carla Viparelli, Carlo Marcucci, Max Coppeta, and Nicola Evangelisti, boldly take on this challenge with Estate Italiana.
Joining the artists of ART1307 with the launch of his own traveling exhibition, Drive In, is Marco Casentini, originally from La Spezia, Italy. Casentini’s exhibit transforms MOAH’s main gallery into a massive mural, showcasing his vibrant collection of abstract paintings inspired by metropolitan architectural structures.
With Drive In, the gallery becomes an immersive installation which envelops the spectator in geometric shapes and colors, created specifically in relation to the gallery itself. In doing so, Casentini aims to develop a complex relationship with the larger space, while modifying the perception of the viewer. After its launch in Lancaster, the exhibit will travel to Milan, Italy, at the Bocconi Art Gallery of the University Bocconi and finish at the Reggia Reale di Caserta in Caserta, Italy. Drive In will also celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Fiat 500 by wrapping the vehicle in a complementary design. The vehicle will be on display at MOAH, then in the Hunter Alfa Romeo/Fiat showroom at the Lancaster Auto Mall.
In addition to tomorrow’s premier, MOAH invites the local community to engage with the visiting international artists at several other Estate Italiana events. On Sept. 3, at 2 p.m. the Italian artists will host a gallery walk-through, where they will speak about their work and artistic processes. Also in conjunction with Estate Italiana, Carla Viparelli will host a free artist talk to engage the community at 2 p.m. Oct. 8 in the museum’s South Gallery. The presentation will include an overview of her experience as a contemporary Italian artist as well as her current work on display.
Many in the Antelope Valley community have already welcomed and embraced Estate Italiana. The exhibit is supported by the Lancaster Museum and Public Art Foundation, ART1307, Best Western—Desert Poppy Inn, Hunter Alfa Romeo/Fiat, Fregoso Outdoor Foundation, Visco Financial Insurance Services, LookUp, and the Italian Cultural Institute of Los Angeles.
MOAH is located at 665 W. Lancaster Blvd. For more details, visit www.lancastermoah.org or call (661) 723-6250. While museum admission is free, the suggested donation is $5 for adults and $3 for students and seniors with valid ID. MOAH is open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday (extended hours to 8 p.m. on Thursday). It is closed on Monday and holidays.
