For his first solo exhibition at Punto Sull'arte art gallery, Giorgio Laveri will show more than thirty sculptures of his most famous series, the best of his recent production attributable to the “giant” period. The exhibition, curated by Alessandra Redaelli that will go on until May 15, will be accompanied by the presentation – only on Sunday, April 25 – of the itinerant project #HASHTAG curated by David Melis.

On Sunday, April 25, from 11 am to 6 pm Giorgio Laveri will be then protagonist at Punto Sull'arte – Viale Sant’Antonio 59/61, Varese – of the opening reception of his solo show “Volver” and of the event #HASHTAG. At the ground floor of the art gallery elegant lipsticks, cherries at the peak of ripeness, turgid fountain pens, but also humble clothes pegs or the old pencil sharpener that we used at school (and which the invasion of multimedia boards and the iPad have rendered virtually obsolete) grow out of all proportion and are transformed by his hands into totems, almost cult objects that make us look at everyday reality differently. The glazed colours and the lustre of the ceramic (with embellishments - some in pure gold - added during the third firing) overturn tradition in perceptive short circuits that enchant in extreme aesthetic pleasure. An operation which, while starting from pop suggestions, goes beyond its scope in an exquisitely conceptual game.

During the opening reception on Sunday, April 25, one of the gallery spaces will be transformed into a photographic set. Giorgio Laveri's giant photographic cameras, created entirely from ceramic, arrive in Varese after the world premiere presentation at the Usina del Arte cultural space in Buenos Aires, the French leg in Vence and events organized in Borgio Verezzi, Albissola Marina and Reggio Emilia. Visitors will be photographed by the artist with a vintage Polaroid and the shots will then be included in a catalogue containing the various exhibition moments. A unique occasion to meet the artist, examine his research in depth and actively take part in an unexhibited project in total safety and in compliance with current regulations.

The event is organized in compliance with the health regulations issued by the Italian Government and access to the Gallery will be limited. It is recommended to book a time slot from 11 am to 6 pm for visiting the exhibition and avoiding waiting times.

The exhibition is accompanied by a bilingual catalogue created by Punto Sull'arte containing curator Alessandra Redaelli's critical text and #HASHTAG project by David Melis. The artist will be present for the Opening Reception.

Giorgio Laveri was born in Savona. After his professional training in television directing, in 1974 he began to devote himself to cinema and theatre. During the course of his career he signed to 52 theatre pieces and 23 feature films, also collaborating with Swiss television.

From the end of the '70s he began to translate his cinematographic experience into the field of artistic experimentation, thus landing on sculpture and making friends with ceramics and with the nearby factories of Albisola, a place whose noble artistic tradition is known and appreciated all over the world. In 1993 he founded the Mediterranean Artistic Movement together with friend and artist Patrick Moya: the movement aimed to promote ceramic art and in the following years he worked on the definitive drafting of the First Manifesto of Mediterranean Ceramics.

During the course of his long career he has taken part in more than one hundred events, presenting his work not only in Italy but abroad in private galleries and important public spaces and museums: from the Complesso Monumentale del Pramàr in Savona to the Château-Musée Renoir in Cagnes sur Mer and the Palais de la Méditerranée in Nice in France, from Montecarlo to Florida, Hong Kong to Korea. For more than fifteen years he has participated in almost all the main trade fairs in the sector in Italy and abroad.

Laveri is an artist trained in multidisciplinarity, creator of performance, installations and artistic creations developed within a balanced mix of figurative and thematic ideas, as well as persuasive scenographic aspects and expressive clarity. His medium of choice remains third fire glazed ceramic, a complex and sophisticated technique that he has mastered like few others and that he intertwines with cinema and theatre, in the chosen subjects as well as in the means of presenting them to the public.

Over the course of his career he has received important awards in the artistic sector, including the Premio alla Carriera (Lifetime Achievement Award) in 2016 from the Nobile Contrada del Nicchio and Associazione Arte Vasai di Siena (Art Potters Association of Siena).

His works are in private and public collections all over the world.