Segmento Magazine XIX - Spring Edition 2019 by Segmento

UNAPOLOGETICALLY ITALIAN

Unveiling the inner unity of the sacred and the profane

A work of art by Veronica Piraccini Spring 2019 - ISSUE XIX

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CONTENT COVER STORY

Founder and Managing Director Daniele Curto daniele.curto@segmento.com.au 0418 891 285

The inner unity of the sacred and the profane

Associate Editor Halyey J. Egan editor@segmento.com.au

Raffaele Caputo

Graphic Artist Elaine Bocchini marketing@segmento.com.au

Italian Magazine

ENDORSEMENT

Eat The Beat, Italian food and techno music weaved into Melbourne’s party Benedetta Ferrara Are you eligible for Italian citizenship? Marco Permunian Como, Garda and Maggiore: An insider’s guide to the Italian lakes Rachael Martin 99 murals of 120 artists revive the abandoned Roman district of Torraccia Jesper Storgaard Jensen

Andrea Camilleri, The Sicilian Maestro who left this world as he dreamed: telling stories Benedetta Ferrara

Environmental Movement Extinction Rebellion explains how to counter the climate and ecological crises Hayley J. Egan The Man, the Myth, the Magic: Q&A with Signor Mont Jenna Lo Bianco Astronomer Lorenzo Spina: from Florence to Melbourne to study the stars Benedetta Ferrara

Creative Consultant Imbarani Poonasamy Photographers Paco Matteo Li Calzi - Daniele Curto Ksenia Belova - Jonathan Di Maggio Giorgia Maselli For features, articles and editorial submissions: segmento@segmento.com.au For advertising equires please contact: marketing@segmento.com.au 0418 891 285

Cover photo credits Gabriella Carta Translation Support Jenna Lo Bianco

EDITORIAL

Contributors Agata Grimaldi Archimede Fusillo Ivano Ercole Hayley J. Egan Francesco Ricatti Rachael Martin Elenoire Laudieri Di Biase Omar D’Incecco Daniele Foti-Cuzzola Mariantonietta Rasulo Jenna Lo Bianco Natalie Di Pasquale Elaine Bocchini Raffaele Caputo Jytte Holmqvist Valeria Suriano Benedettta Ferrara

DISCLAIMER

A credit we can’t afford Daniele Curto

The Editorial-Staff ensures that every details are correct at the time of printing, however the publisher accepts no responsibility for errors and inaccuracies.

ISSUE XIX

Third generation Italian Gianni Vitellone talks about personal identity and family pride Jenna Lo Bianco

Introducing Tango connoisseur and member of the Melbourne Tango Orchestra, Stephen Cuttriss Jytte Holmqvist

Daniele Curto

A CREDIT WE CAN’T AFFORD This year it took seven months for humankind to exhaust the natural resources that planet Earth provides in one calendar year. 29th July symbolically marked the date when

It is called ‘Earth Overshoot Day’ and it is an important opportunity to reflect on this obstinate and dangerous overconsumption, as we consider the future regenerative capacity of the resources themselves.

and/or by emitting carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. To satisfy the national ecological footprint, Italy would need to be 4.7 times its size, or alternatively, three quarters of the population of our Bel Paese would need to leave.

Earth Overshoot Day was announced by the Global Footprint Network (GFN), an international organisation that monitors the ‘ecological footprint’ of humans, and reports on the global over-exploitation of the raw materials that the ecosystems of Earth ‘donate’ to us human beings.

Amazingly Australia, which is the eighth richest nation in the world in terms of natural resources, with an almost irrelevant population and a surface more than twice the size of the whole of Europe, does not do better. In fact, it recorded its own Overshoot Day last March 31st. This is a harsh wakeup call to the unsustainability of the Australian lifestyle. At the current pace, if all of humanity lived and consumed raw materials like the Australians, we would need 5.2 planets to maintain this unfortunate lifestyle.

humanity begins to use the resources of the future and to live on credit.

According to the GFN, the natural resources on offer in Italy were depleted much earlier in the year, so Italy’s ‘Overshoot Day’ was actually 15th May of this year. This ecological deficit is due to the fact that excessive consumption of energy, water, forests and land means that Italians must import natural resources through trade

There is only one possibility for the epilogue of this narrative. ‘Humanity will eventually have to operate in compliance with the ecological resources of the Earth,’ as the GFN maintains, ‘regardless of whether the balance is restored by environmental disasters or by changes in policy’.

In short, sitting and hoping for a happy ending does not seem to be an option, because there is a moral obligation for us to act, to cease being silent.

As William S. Burroughs said, ‘There are never innocent spectators.’

Italian Magazine

Sadly, this is not one of those openended stories in which the outcome is left to our imagination.

Benedetta Ferrara

EAT THE BEAT ITALIAN FOOD AND TECHNO MUSIC WEAVED INTO MELBOURNE’S PARTY One sunny Saturday Melbourne afternoon in January 2017, tickets to the final ‘Eat The Beat’ party sold out. Italian entrepreneur Matteo Belcore had, in a relatively short time, risen from obscurity to ubiquity in Australia’s night life scene.

‘The process has been a roller coaster of ups and downs, that has caused me to go bankrupt three times in my life,’ he says, ‘But I learnt from my mistakes and I risked everything to make my dream come true.’

It’s well-known that Italians have a sacred tradition of using food to connect with family and friends. Matteo has fused this beautiful rich heritage with his passion for music in creating the brand ‘Eat The Beat’ - a music and event management agency. He has cultivated a huge following for European house-electronic music in the Melbourne club scene and secured tours for famous international DJs from cities like Ibiza, Los Angeles and London. Today, Eat The Beat operates not only in Melbourne. This year the team will travel to Europe for a summer tour, followed by India in September. Belcore’s success, for some, is unsurprising. Techno music is the most influential genre of the century. Its defining elements—synthesizers, keyboards, samplers, drum machines and sequencers are now echoed in pop music around the globe. Matteo Belcore, however, is not a typical entrepreneur. At the age of 13 Matteo discovered a passion for partying in his hometown of Roma. By 18, he became a club promoter, organising music festivals all over the city. However, whilst starting to find his feet, the Italian economy experienced a tumble and Matteo, like others within the local music industry, began to struggle. He left the music-party scene to join his father in the insurance business, but it didn’t take long to realise he wanted to reconnect with his passion. He came up with a new strategy, studied the Australian market, and saved up some seed money. Australia felt like the perfect place to rebuild a beautiful new life. He moved to Melbourne in June 2015.

An Eat The Beat event at New Guernica

It took time, but Matteo had something unique and different from what every other club was playing: his Italian epicurean heritage, and an intimate understanding of the power of contemporary techno music. The community grew quickly. Eat The Beat’s events became the place for friends to meet up, catch up, eat and party. The crowds were finally feeling the love and passion that Matteo and his team were pouring into the parties. In 2016 he funded a party and an after-party to follow. ‘Every time I went back home after the party at 5am, I used to find a group of people waiting at the entrance of my place because they wanted the party to continue,’ Matteo says. The first after-party took place over an ANZAC weekend at a time when nearly all other venues were closed. Being the only ones open, they ended up with hundreds of new followers. Eat The Beat was, however, running into the same old challenges of the techno music genre. Club owners who weren’t giving them enough space, musical freedom and patience to build their brand were making things difficult. Deeply unhappy, Matteo decided to give up his big dream and organised a final party to end it all. Surprisingly, it was a huge success and the venue manager was impressed. Every party since has been sold out. Eat The Beat has become an example of modern Italian success within the Australian music industry. Impressively, the agency has even started one of the world’s first DJ apprenticeships which has garnered the attention of RAI (Radiotelevisione Italiana). The team is now made of a close-knit team of likeminded people who believe in Matteo’s vision, most of whom he met over the years on the scene.

The Eat The Beat Team. From the left: Etwas, Andrea Guadalupi, Matteo Belcore, Chris McCord and Matteo Freyrie.

Immerse yourself in Italy

With the warm reception, amazing cuisine and family-style community, Eat The Beat is something new and different to the typical all-night party. Matteo is hoping to expand to other Australian cities like Sydney, Adelaide and Brisbane. ‘You can do it, as long as you want to take risks and are very passionate. I’ve always been very passionate about what I do, and I think it shows in what I do.’

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Marco Permunian (Founder of Italian Citizenship Assistance)

ARE YOU ELIGIBLE FOR ITALIAN CITIZENSHIP? People of Italian descent all over the world are becoming aware that their heritage may be more than an emotional connection to Italy. In recent years, Italian citizenship has become a hot topic across the age spectrum for various reasons. Many millennials are looking for experiences abroad in Europe, or to make a new life for themselves, while those who are about to become pensioners are interested in enjoying their retirement overlooking the mediterranean, or the rolling hills of Tuscany, while sipping their Limoncello. There are also young

The most common way of getting Italian citizenship

Case’, never need to appear in person in front of the

families wanting to raise their children in the land their

is by what is known as Jure Sanguinis, also known as

court and can simply appoint an Italian attorney on their

ancestors once knew, and to be able to travel freely

‘citizenship by descent’, which is done by documenting

behalf. This is another service that we offer and we have

throughout the European Union, giving their children

that you have an ancestor who came from Italy.

many success stories.

a unique, enriched upbringing.

However, it is not just those of Italian descent who are

The other common way we assist people is to get

eligible to become an Italian citizen. Spouses of Italian

Italian citizenship through marriage. When it comes to

citizens may also be eligible. Whether you are of Italian

citizenship by marriage, there are a few basic minimum

descent, or married to someone of Italian descent, you

requirements. The couple must have been married for

will be required to gather a number of documents from

at least 3 years if they are living outside of Italy and

your home country and Italy in order to proceed with

2 years if they are living in Italy in order for the non-

the process. The necessary documents include birth

Italian spouse to be eligible to make an application for

certificates, death certificates, marriage certificates

citizenship. However, if they have children under the

and divorce certificates, when applicable, for each

age of 18, then both time conditions are cut by half: 3

generation to connect you to your last relative to reside

years becomes 1.5 years and 2 years becomes 1 year.

Even if you are not considering relocating to Europe, there are many benefits to having Italian dual citizenship beyond just having a document that makes your italianità official. Being an Italian citizen secures your rights no matter what the situation in Italy may be. The laws of citizenship are ever evolving and the Italian government is continually regulating and re-regulating the laws related to citizenship and immigration. Once you are officially an Italian, nobody

We, at ICA, are proud to assist those from the

legacy that can be passed onto future generations;

Italian Citizenship Assistance (ICA) has extensive

global Italian community to help make their dreams

your children, your grandchildren and even more

experience with gathering documents from Italy, and

come true in their ancestral homeland, while applying

distant future generations, something that is beyond

it’s a task that we accomplish on a daily basis for our

for citizenship here in Italy, connecting them to the

any normal gift that you would be able to give a loved

clients in a variety of situations.

land that their birthright.

one.

Citizens of Italy also get to enjoy the benefits of one of the highest rated health care systems in the world (according to the World Health Organization). Being a European citizen, whether you choose to reside in Italy or another European nation, entitles you to a European Health card which gives you access to European doctors and emergency services across the European continent.

Whether you are needing any help with requesting

To find out if you are eligible, or for more information,

documents from Italy, or guidance in obtaining records

feel free to send us a message through our website

from your home country, feel free to contact us.

ItalianCitizenshipAssistance.com/contact and one of

We can also help in situations that are not so

ISSUE XIX

can take that away from you. Italian citizenship is a

in Italy.

our dual citizenship experts will be in contact with you.

straightforward. In situations when an applicant has an ancestor who gave birth to her child before January 1, 1948, there is a different process, which involves making a case in front of a court in Rome. While this may seem daunting, it is quite straight forward and in the majority of cases, petitioners who go through this process, which is often referred to as a ‘1948 Judicial

Rachael Martin

COMO, GARDA AND MAGGIORE: AN INSIDER’S GUIDE TO THE ITALIAN LAKES From the early 17th century onwards it was developed by the Borromeo family, and in particular Vitaliano VI. Visit both the baroque Palazzo Borromeo and spectacular Italianate Baroque Garden there. The gardens of Isola Madre are famous for rare plants and year round flowering. Also visit the Palazzo Borromeo here that French writer Gustave Flaubert named ‘paradise on earth’. Slightly further west is Lake Orta, visited and loved by both Balzac and Nietzsche. Isola San Giulio, the lake’s island, is home to the 12th century Basilica di San Giulio and its frescoes of saints while the lake’s one town Orta San Giulio is a great place for enjoying lakeside life in the cafés and bars of Piazza Motta.

The Italian Lakes: Como, Garda and Maggiore and the smaller of islands of Orta and Iseo that may be lesser known but are just as beautiful. They’ve provided inspiration for writers, artists and composers. Pliny the Elder and Pliny the Younger lived on Lake Como, and statues of both can be found on Como’s beautiful marble-clad Duomo. In recent years, the lakes have been used as film sets. Ocean’s Twelve was filmed at Lake Como’s Villa Erba and Laglio’s Villa Oleandra, while both Casino Royale and Star Wars Episode II Attack of the Clones have scenes that were filmed at Villa Balbianello. The film world has always been attracted to the lakes. George Clooney’s Villa Oleandra, where the Obamas were guests earlier this year, is at Laglio on Lake Como. With their villas, lush lakeside greenery, charming pastel-coloured buildings, luxury hotels and associations with the world of the rich and famous, it goes without saying that the Italian lakes hold a much-loved place in our imagination. Whether you’re planning that trip of a lifetime, or simply want to sit back and dream, read on for an insider’s guide. If you’re heading north, fly to Milan. First stop is Lake Como, an hour’s drive from Milan or you can just as easily hop on a train. Start in Como, home of silk production since the 15th century. If you want to explore this, the Silk Museum is an excellent place to begin (www. museosetacomo.com). Then take the funicular railway up to Brunate for fine views of both lake and town that really help you appreciate the town’s original Roman street-plan.

Maggiore Lake

Take a boat up the lake to the village of Tremezzo and the 18th century Villa Carlotta, built by the Marquis Giorgio Clerici at the end of the 17th century, with its museum and gardens, and venue for cultural events. (www.villacarlotta.it) Then get back on the boat and go across to Bellagio. This is the village that inspired the famous Bellagio Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. If you can afford five star luxury, Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni (www. villaserbelloni.com) that began as a holiday villa for an aristocratic Milanese family is the place to stay. Follow in the steps of politicians, royalty and film stars. It’s a great place to wander up and down its steep cobbled streets, stopping for a coffee or aperitivo at the bars under the portico by the lake. Don’t forget to take a walk through the gardens of Villa Melzi (www.giardinidivillamelzi.it). And if you have time, take the boat over to Varenna for more picture postcard perfect beauty. The castle lies above. If you have the energy, the short walk uphill is worth it for the views. These are views you will remember for years to come.

Slow it all down on Lake Iseo, or Lake Sebino as it’s also known. It’s just past the charming town of Bergamo to the north east of Milan, and offers great opportunities for hiking and cycling. Visit the town of Lovere, named one of Italy’s most beautiful villages in 2003. Then take a boat to Monte Isola, the lake’s island and walk up to the Santuario della Ceriola. The lake is also just north of the Franciacorta wine region. Keep going east and Lake Garda lies just before Verona, city of Romeo and Juliet. Lake Garda offers both windsurfing and wine tasting, making it the perfect destination for a well-deserved few days of rest and relaxation whilst sampling some of the local food and wines. Sirmione is the medieval town that always proves popular while the town of Bardolino gives its name to the wine that comes from the lake’s south-eastern shores. If you’re moving onwards to Verona, Desenzano del Garda is a great place to stop off on the way.

Lake Maggiore, west of Lake Como, straddles Switzerland in the north. Visit the botanical gardens of Villa Taranto (www.villataranto.it) in the pretty town of Verbania. The beautiful Borromean Islands lie just north of Stresa where Ernest Hemingway used to stay at the Grand Hotel des Iles Borromées. To get there, take the boat from Stresa, a charming town with its Liberty style villas. Isola Bella, named after Carlo III’s wife Isabella, was originally a barren rock inhabited by fishmongers.

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Desenzano del Garda Photo Rachael Martin

Jesper Storgaard Jensen

99 MURALS OF 120 ARTISTS REVIVE THE ABANDONED ROMAN DISTRICT OF TORRACCIA

Photo Jesper Storgaard Jensen

120 artists have created 99 murals that have a total length of 1,260 metres, second only to the Berlin

ISSUE XIX

Above, below and in the following pages: The Art Mile, inaugurated in May this year, in the Roman district of Torraccia

Wall. The Art Mile, inaugurated in May this year, in the Roman district of Torraccia, is an explosion of beauty and an example of how public spaces can be turned into surprising works of art. Segmento went to visit an unknown Roman area which is way out of the city’s centre, and definitely way ‘out of the ordinary’.

This is exactly what happened in May this year, when quite an extraordinary art project, The Mile Art, was inaugurated in the presence of Rome’s Mayor, Virginia Raggi. This extraordinary project is located in the Torraccia/San Basilio-district, in the northeastern part of the Italian capital, close to the city’s huge ring road. The promoter is the cultural association Arte e Città a Colori (Art and Colourful Cities). We went to talk to its President, Francesco Galvano, to find out more about this project. On arrival in Torraccia, a neighborhood built at the end of the 1980s, the importance of having created a work so full of light and life becomes abundantly clear. This suburban neighborhood really seems to be on the edge of reality, with rows of anonymous public housing and many social problems. But now it has an attraction that draws in both Roman and non-Roman visitors and that has forever torn it away (anyway, so it seems) from grayness and anonymity.

Apparently a mission impossible

I approach the beginning of the area. Here there is a sign with the words: ‘Welcome to the Art Mile - 99 murals and 120 artists for an Open Air Museum’ that welcomes me, together with Francesco Galvano.

As we start our walk, Francesco starts to recount: ‘The idea of this project came to me about three years ago, when some local people asked me: ‘why don’t we try to use the noise barrier to do a street art project’? The anti-noise barrier was placed at the end of the Torraccia district to cushion the hubbub of traffic from the ring road’, Francesco explains and goes on.

The first impact is considerable and leaves you incredulous. The panels are about four metres high and 2.7 metres wide. There are about a hundred of them, divided into different sections. In all, they measure 1,260 metres. ‘After the Berlin Wall, which surpasses the Art Mile by just 40 meters, this is Europe’s longest work of art’, Francesco tells me, understandably proud.

‘The idea was good, but it really seemed like a mission impossible. Our association works to find large spaces where intervention is required, to change the appearance of a neighbourhood, obviously to make it more beautiful and civilised. I knew, therefore, more or less what needed to be done, and right from the start I knew that there were so many things that needed to be sorted out’, he says.

It’s hard to disagree with him when you take a look around. Many years ago, in the 1930s, San Basilio was one of the first villages to be born, when many families in the centre of Rome were forcibly moved to the suburbs to make room for the construction of new central roads. The former well-known urban planner, Paolo Berdini, called the new suburbs ‘distant suburbs’, while writer and filmmaker Pier Paolo Pasolini was much less diplomatic, defining San Basilio simply ‘a concentration camp for Rome’s poor people’. ‘With a small group of locals and with the fundamental support of the so-called Retake Group Torraccia (Retake is a non-profit organization in Rome that works on various regeneration projects, ed.), we began to clean up the whole area. The grass was growing wild and was quite high. Then we had to send away shady characters who were dealing drugs. It was only a year later, when the area had been suitably cleared, that we were able to start the core project,’ explains Francesco. Today the lawns nicely manicured, the plants are pruned, the benches have been painted and young trees stand side by side with the older ones.

‘You will surely see many well-known personalities, painted to highlight some of the themes covered throughout the work: here we pay tribute to nature and the environment, we defend the most socially marginalized classes and we also say no to violence against women’.

A choral work The project was brought about from a choral work: 120 artists were involved - some well-known street artists, together with artists that are totally unknown to the general public, as well as local school youngsters. Even foreign artists have participated, e.g. from Venezuela, USA and the Philippines. Everyone worked without receiving any remuneration. The materials were paid with crowdfunding which the local people organised. The murals are full of human and pedagogical messages: two stylised children are accompanied by the phrase ‘Don’t compare children to each other, you can’t compare the sun and the moon, they shine when it’s the right time’.

In front of all this beauty I immediately feel concerned. How do you protect yourself from the notorious Roman writers, those who are signaling their passage with not always artistic and often vandalistic tendencies? ‘Well, before starting the project we identified the signatures of the local writers, and we contacted them in order to involve them in the project. And they accepted happily. In doing so we motivated them to safeguard the murals. I hope it will work’, says Francesco. To understand the stories behind each of the 99 murals you could easily spend an entire day in Torraccia. I ask Francesco about some artworks, including one that depicts a teenage boy standing among the stones, with the sea behind him. Francesco tells me: ‘Among the murals there is one in particular with quite a special story. This is the case of Federico, a boy who died of fulminant meningitis earlier this year. He was 15 years old. His mother had asked me to dedicate a mural to him and of course we wanted to fulfil her wish. The artist is called foko 127. He is a policeman who is an artist in his spare time. Look ... he also quoted a small part of an Eros Ramozzotti song, “From the Other Part of the Infinite”, which Federico liked very much. Her mother told me that since this mural has

Francesco Galvano is rightly aware of how

Another plan for the future is to create periodic

been there, she no longer goes to the cemetery. She

aesthetics have embraced a powerful symbolism in the

cultural events in this area. It used to be ‘a concentration

prefers to come here, to be with her son’, Francesco

Art Mile. Yet he doesn’t rest on his laurels. ‘We have

camp for the poor’, but today, instead, it seems like a

tells me.

a new project in the pipeline,’ he adds, ‘that is, to put

small corner of Switzerland, where every colour tells a story of its own.

a plaque under each work, with the artist’s name and a brief explanation of the meaning of the work itself.

passed, nothing is over, you have only slipped into the

Having this information would enrich the mural itself.

other side, to the infinity, we’ll meet again, where the

Then my dream is to organise guided tours. Only this

horizon meets the open sea’.

way will it be possible to fully enjoy this amazing work’.

ISSUE XIX

I take a good look at that image which is accompanied by Ramazzotti’s words: ‘Nothing has

A not-for-profit initiative aimed at facilitating the international exchange of artists www.artgaianet.org ph 0410 860 036 - info@artgaianet.org

Raffaele Caputo

THE INNER UNITY OF THE SACRED AND THE PROFANE ‘FROM THE IMPRINT OF JESUS’ BY ARTIST VERONICA PIRACCINI IS BOUND TO RESURRECT THE AGE-OLD DEBATE SURROUNDING THE AUTHENTICITY OF THE SHROUD OF TURIN

Veronica Piraccini in her atelier d’art in Rome Photo Gabriella Carta

The Shroud of Turin, supposedly the burial cloth used to wrap the body of Jesus of Nazareth after his crucifixion, has for centuries fascinated theologians, archeologists, historians, scientists and artists. But is it truly the burial shroud of Jesus Christ? Or is it a work of art by an unknown medieval artist, indeed a forgery as several scholars have proposed? The shroud’s enduring fascination has magnified rather than diminished the historical mystery.

The first written record of a shroud bearing the image of a crucified man was made in 1390 by Bishop Pierre d’Arcis of Lirey, in France, when he wrote to Pope Clement VII claiming that an artist had confessed to making a forgery of the shroud. The artist’s name was not mentioned in the Bishop’s letter and unfortunately remains unknown. This same shroud, or perhaps it was another to have coincidently also existed in Lirey, is said to have been in the possession of a French Knight, Geoffroi de Charny, from 1353 until his death at the battle of Poitiers in 1356. To confound matters further historians have not only contended this to be a forgery, they have sometimes attributed the forgery to artists who lived centuries apart. 10

Other historians have suggested that the shroud was owned by the Byzantine emperors, but that it had vanished during the Sack of Constantinople in 1204. They fail, however, to provide evidence as to its origin or speculate on how this particular shroud would have made its journey to France and how it came to be in the possession of the Royal House of Savoy, which then transferred it to Turin in 1578 where it has been ever since. The Vatican’s position has always been on the fence, likely because there are no historical records or archeological evidence prior to the 14th century that can definitively account for the origin of the Shroud of Turin. The Church has neither officially accepted nor refuted the authenticity of the shroud.

Which is a good position to take considering that the shroud inexplicably turns up hundreds and hundreds of years after the death of Christ. Actually, it is the only position the Church can have, not only because there is scientific analysis to dispute the Church at every turn, but also because for many of its flock there is no ambiguity surrounding the shroud’s authenticity. That is, there is no either/or possibility. For the faithful there is no question that the Shroud of Turin is a true relic. Faith, as the Church is well aware, is not based on proof but is in itself an ineffable mystery. Thus, for the faithful, to acquiesce to supernatural conviction is sacred whereas to accept a rational explanation is profane.

But what if the sacred and the profane were both valid? It is wise to note that since 1983, when the Royal House of Savoy entrusted the Shroud of Turin to the Holy See, the Vatican has been careful not to make witless proclamations of authenticity or to mock science. In 1998, Pope John Paul II announced that the Church had no special qualifications for determining the authenticity of the Shroud and that it was the task of scientists to continue investigating, stating further that ‘the imprint left by the tortured body of the Crucified One, which attests to the tremendous human capacity for causing pain and death to one’s fellow man, stands as an icon of the suffering of the innocent in every age’. More than ten years later, Pope Benedict XVI, after putting the Shroud on public display, described the Shroud as ‘an Icon written in blood, the blood of a man who was scourged, crowned with thorns, crucified and whose right side was pierced’, analogous to a mirror in which we can see our own suffering. And when the Shroud was exhibited in the Cathedral of Turin as part of the Easter celebrations in 2013, Pope Francis stated, ‘the Man of the Shroud invites us to contemplate Jesus of Nazareth’, that is to say, his teachings, which too often are swallowed up by myth.

at Rome’s Academy of Fine Arts, where light has a direct affinity with darkness and the visible with the invisible. After all, like the Church, is it not the task of art to reunite the extremes of human experience?

Here we are confronted with two paradoxical truths, revealing the inner unity of the sacred and the profane. One cannot exist without the other, in much the same way that redemption would be meaningless without sin. And here we come to the very heart of the work From the Imprint of Jesus by Veronica Piraccini, artist and Professor in Painting

In 2012, Veronica Piraccini was able to procure a life-size photographic scan of the Shroud of Turin, which she replicated on to transparent paper in mirror-like fashion to the original. She then used two very novel techniques, techniques that can be said to be similar to the use of luminol, a light-producing chemical that forensic investigators apply at crime

Veronica meets Pope Francis at Santa Marta Photo Daniele Garofani

ISSUE XIX

scenes to detect traces of blood. With the help of her physicist sister Nadia, Piraccini discovered new pigments that she calls ‘Imperceptible’, that is, pigments invisible to the naked eye. She applied a blue pigment to highlight the blows and bruises inflicted on the body of ‘Jesus’ and a red pigment to highlight the wounds caused by the crown of thorns on the head, the nails on the hands and feet, and the lance in the side of his body. But these highlighted colours cannot be seen in natural light, they are only made visible when a black light (or ultraviolet light, which is also invisible) is cast on to the canvas.

A fresco depicting the Ostension of the Holy Shroud, 1642

From the Imprint of Jesus is bound to resurrect the age-old debate surrounding the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin when it is exhibited in Melbourne this coming November. But, of course, there is more to Piraccini’s work than meets the eye. Part of our fascination, and indeed abhorrence, with the work comes about because it evokes an apotheosis of suffering while it simultaneously affirms the sanctity of human nature. The sacred is not ‘lowered’ to the profane, nor the profane ‘exalted’ as sacred, but rather illuminates their uniformity. Nixora Group and the Global Association of International Artists (GAIA) will host a ten-day exhibition titled The Holy Shroud at Melbourne’s prestigious SpACE@ Collins gallery from 15 to 24 November 2019.

GAIA – Global Association of International Artists is a not-for-profit organisation that supports the international exchange of figurative artists and promotes social cohesion.

Nixora Group is a consulting firm that supports financial institutions and large corporations with state-of-the-art risk management, analytics and data intelligence services.

Veronica used two very novel techniques that can be said to be similar to the use of luminol. Piraccini discovered new pigments invisible to the naked eye. She, then, applied a blue pigment to highlight the blows and bruises inflicted on the body of ‘Jesus’ and a red pigment to highlight the wounds caused by the crown of thorns on the head, the nails on the hands and feet, and the lance in the side of his body

Ex t t cl i u

La Sacra Sindone

siv Au e st ! ra

lia

The Holy Shroud

A journey through history and art to discover the artistic legacy of the Holy Shroud with Veronica Piraccini The painting “From the Imprint of Jesus” was born from contact with the Holy Shroud and by using imperceptible pigments. It represents the mirror image of the Holy Shroud.

15-24 November 2019

XV - XXIV NOVEMBER SpACE@Collins

ISSUE XIX

A detail of the painting “La Trinitá”, Veronica Piraccini, Rome 2013

SpACE@Collins The Walk Arcade 1/278 Collins St, Melbourne

The imperceptible pigments used to paint the canvas have very unique properties: they allow the painting to become visible from invisible, revealing themselves with a change of light. In fact, it is only when a special light touches the canvas that the painting suddenly takes shape and can be finally seen by a human eye in its full size and brilliant iridescent colours.

info@artgaianet.org - ph: +61 410 860 036 - artgaianet.org/theholyshroud Brought to you by

Benedetta Ferrara

ANDREA CAMILLERI, THE SICILIAN MAESTRO WHO LEFT THIS WORLD AS HE DREAMED: TELLING STORIES ‘If I could, I would like to end my career sitting in a piazza telling stories and, at the end of my life, weave through the crowd with my coppola in my hand’. This was Andrea Camilleri’s response when asked why, at the age of 93, he had not yet decided to retire.

Despite suddenly losing his vision, Camilleri continued to knead reality and fantasy by developing his own unique language, Vigatese - a language which, in bringing together the peculiarities of Sicilian dialects, came to represent Italy’s southern island better than any single dialect could. Andrea Camilleri was born to tell stories, and you can’t stop doing what you were born for. The Sicilian Maestro, who passed away in Rome this July from complications of a broken thigh bone and heart problems, continued to write despite his years and illness, guided on the blank page by his faithful assistant, Valentina Alferj. He continued to write until his final days whilst he was preparing his debut at the ancient Terme di Caracalla. ‘I have an extremely disorderly manner of writing,’ Mr. Camilleri said in 2002. ‘I don’t write like Snoopy: ‘It was a dark and stormy night,’ I couldn’t start with Chapter 1. Everything has to follow a certain logic everything has to be in a certain place’. Camilleri’s novel La Forma dell’Acqua, published in Italy in 1994, introduced the world to Salvo Montalbano, a detective working in the fictional Sicilian town of Vigata, a place where corruption is endemic and unlawfulness rife. The book, published when Mr. Camilleri was 69, sold well enough to warrant a sequel, Il Cane di Terracotta, in 1996, then another, and another. ‘I sold 10,000 copies because people phoned each other, and in the same way you suggest a movie, they were suggesting my books,’ he said in 1998. The series, written in a combination of Italian and Sicilian, grew to more than two dozen titles. Camilleri was four books into it when his character was elevated to a whole new level of popularity by Il Commissario Montalbano, a television series from the Italian state broadcaster RAI that has been running since 1999.

On the left Andrea Camilleri with Luca Zingaretti, the actor who interprets Salvo Montalbano on tv series ‘Il Commissario Montalbano’

It has also aired abroad, including on the BBC in Britain and on SBS in Australia. Montalbano is played by actor Luca Zingaretti. Andrea Camilleri was born in Porto Empedocle, a town in southwestern Sicily that became the inspiration for the fictional Vigata. His father worked for the Italian Coast Guard and eventually became the model for Montalbano, a detective with a certain disregard for authority. He was a staunch Fascist until 1938, when a young Andrea told him a friend had been barred from school because he was Jewish. ‘My father hit the roof, saying, “That bastard,” referring to Mussolini,’ Camilleri recalled. ‘I’ve always tried to make Montalbano critical about the behaviour and orders of his bosses - the imbecility of power,’ he said.

He began teaching theater at his alma mater in 1974 and continued to do so for more than 20 years. His career as a writer began discreetly, with the publication of Il corso delle cose in 1978, and continued in the years that followed, alternating Montalbano’s thrillers with historical novels, including the formidable Birraio di Preston. Depsite Camilleri’s passing, his publishing career is not over. Camilleri wrote a final Montalbano novel years ago and gave it to his publisher to keep in a safe, with strict instructions to publish it only after his death. ‘I finished him off five years ago,’ he said in 2012. ‘That’s to say, the final novel in the series of Montalbano is already written and deposited at the publishing house. When I get fed up with him or am not able to

In 1949 Camilleri won a scholarship to study at the Accademia Nazionale d’Arte Drammatica (The

write any more, I’ll tell the publisher to publish that book.’

National Academy of Dramatic Arts) in Rome. He

How Montalbano’s story ends is still a mystery.

lasted only a year there, but stayed in the city, working

In the meantime, we just have to thank Camilleri for

as a stage director. He was then hired by RAI’s radio

the gift of his books, and celebrate the man who has

division in 1958, but soon he switched to the television

always lived as he wanted, surrounded by words, and

side, directing and adapting scripts.

who left this world as he dreamed: telling stories.

More than just a holiday! www.vitaitaliantours.com

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Jenna Lo Bianco

THIRD GENERATION ITALIAN-AUSTRALIAN GIANNI VITELLONE TALKS ABOUT PERSONAL IDENTITY AND FAMILY PRIDE I recently chatted with Gianni Vitellone, Director of Pronto Travel/Vita Italian Tours in Collingwood, about his life and love of all things Italian. Though Gianni’s family story might sound familiar to many of our readers, being born into an Italian migrant family of the post-Second World War period, it’s Gianni’s day job that might leave many of you with your tongues wagging.

‘In my professional life I am lucky enough to accompany school aged children and adults to Italy as a tour leader for our company Vita Italian Tours’, he tells me. ‘I love being able to share Italy with people especially to show them the out of the way little towns or little trattorie, so they get a real sense of what I like to think is ‘authentic Italy’. Whether it is a primary aged child or a mature traveller, the reaction and joy on people’s faces when they see an iconic landmark such as the Colosseum, or try their hand at making pasta, is one of the things I love most about what we do’. Not all of us are lucky enough to have Gianni’s job, though we can dream, right? But as he shares more and more of his story with me, it becomes plainly clear that Gianni’s passion and motivation for his beloved Italia stem from a deep-seated sense of personal identity and family pride. ‘I was born into a family that was heavily influenced by their cultural heritage. Similar to most migrant stories, my family immigrated in the fifties and whilst they made a home here in Melbourne

ISSUE XIX

as new Australians, a lot of our Italian traditions were kept. I have grown up participating in annual tomato sauce days, long family Sunday lunches and family celebrations around the wood fired pizza oven. Good food and family seem to be a common thread in my upbringing’! I ask Gianni what his Italian heritage means to him on a personal level. ‘It’s

Gianni Vitellone during a coffee break in Collingwood, Melbourne where his travel agency is based

something that I love and am proud of. The Italian language is a huge part of my

Photo Wide Shut Photograpgy

life and is spoken daily with interactions with my Grandmother, catch-ups with my family living in Italy or even reading Italian books and nursery rhymes to my daughter. I remember when I visited the hometowns of my parents for the first

I have a one year old daughter and it is extremely important for my wife and I that she speaks the Italian language’.

time. I was able to walk down the street where my dad was born and stand in

I ask Gianni what he thinks is important to keep alive in our culture as we

front of the house that my mum grew up in. Whilst Australia is old, as a colonised

move further from the post-World War II generation of Italians in Australia. He

country it is extremely young, and the difference between Australia and Italy is

identifies the linguistic challenge to be of greatest significance in his response. ‘I

magnified when you can see how many of Italy’s buildings are steeped in history.

think the biggest challenge for post-World War Italian-Australians is to maintain

It’s important that I know how my family lived in Italy and the effort it took to come to Australia. I want to be able to teach my daughter her history. I want her to be able to speak the language and be proud of her heritage’. Gianni’s intimate relationship with Italy began when he was just 16 years old,

and speak the Italian language. It is so important we are able to keep the Italian language alive in the future generations. My hope is that my daughter will be able to speak both Italian and English and will also pass on the language to the future generations’.

embarking upon his first trip across the seas. ‘I remember the feeling of familiarity and the welcoming feeling from not only our extended family but the many people we met along the way’. That initial voyage whet his appetite, being one of many ‘pilgrimages’, the term he uses, back to his family’s homeland. ‘I went on to study International Business and Italian Language here in Melbourne and by the time I was 21 I was assisting my father in guiding groups of Australian and New Zealand travellers in Italy’, he says, putting all the pieces together. I am curious about his love of Italy, asking what it is he most adores about the country and its culture. His response is a long list of expected icons and ideologies: ‘the food, the history, the art, the coffee, the people, the strong sense of community in the streets and squares of the small towns and cities. But above all else, the Italian philosophy of life and family’. His list plays at the heartstrings; a melting pot of memory-laced experiences, cultural identifiers and whimsical ideals. Gianni is in a very privileged position professionally, able to have a significant impact on the experiences of others as they travel and explore all that Italy has to offer. I wonder if he feels at all obligated to carry on or spread Italian traditions

Gianni, his wife Libby and daughter Luna during their most recent trip to Italy earlier this year.

and customs to the future generations in Australia, of which he assures me he does. ‘Absolutely’, he says, ‘I’m lucky enough to be in a position where I can do this both in a personal and professional manner. A lot of the traditions and customs that I want to continue are not only because of their Italian origin but also because they are just lovely things to do! Lunches and cooking as a family, pasta and sauce making, even the two-kiss greeting on the cheeks are very much a part of me.

Jytte Holmqvist

INTRODUCING TANGO CONNOISSEUR AND MEMBER OF THE MELBOURNE TANGO ORCHESTRA, STEPHEN CUTTRISS

Stephen Cuttriss (with kind permission by Stephen Cuttriss)

Tango connoisseur Stephen Cuttriss has been praised by the media as one of ‘Australia’s heavyweight tango musicians’ and a bandoneon player who ignites the sonic soundscapes of Argentina on this unique instrument. He explores the roots of both urban tango and rich rural folk traditions. Based in Melbourne but with a past in Brisbane, Cuttriss travels regularly to Argentina and Buenos Aires. He has played at a number of venues in Melbourne and beyond, including at the Melbourne Recital Centre. On 13th July, 2019, Cuttriss and band delivered a faithful rendition of the Argentinian tango during an evening dedicated to Tango Mania at Open Studio in Northcote. The majority of the spectators were Argentinians brought back to their native lands in mind and spirit.

What first attracted you to the tango? I came from a classical music background. I originally did classical tango but at the same time was interested in a more multicultural musical context. I was playing a lot of European music and then got to a point where I was keen on playing more avant-garde bandoneon. I started to look into some of the more classical repertoires of tango and dance. I thought this was a really nice marriage between the classical refinement of the skills I had and a more culturally embedded music. I was living in Brisbane and found a bandoneon for sale, I bought it and that was the start of the journey.

The tango originated to a large extent among Italian migrants in Buenos Aires. This music is now coming also to Melbourne, a city with a history of Italian migration as well. Is the city and the Italian community ready to open up to the new vibes and rhythms of the tango? The primary audience and vehicle for this culture here in Melbourne is the dance community. There are people from professional backgrounds and from other Latin styles who come together and Buenos Aires is very much the pilgrimage for these dancers. And so, there are all these community dance hubs or milongas that happen and out of Australia Melbourne has one of the biggest scenes for the tango. The Italian connection is interesting because I think back in the early 20th century when the dance band thing was big, particularly in Melbourne, there would have been the big community Italian bands

who would have been playing some tangos, and a lot of the Latin repertoire was encapsulated into this thing called tango. And so maybe it was not even Argentinian tango that was happening here (but a more local Italian tango within Melbourne) because tango had boomed along with Italian migration.

What would you say is the link between the traditional tango, migration, and the Italian community then and now? Traditional tango when it developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries happened because of that melting pot. There’s a huge Italian population in Buenos Aires and there is no tango without the Italian community. If you want to learn this music and immerse yourself in the style you have to understand how they speak. And they speak in a really distinct way in Buenos Aires. Both lunfardo and porteño have that kind of nuance and intonation like Italian, and so much Italian vocabulary and there’s a strong connection between the phrasing of the music and the way the locals speak. You only have to be in Buenos Aires to feel you can be in Italy… As for later migration I think once the Italian community was assimilated into Buenos Aires, tango, too, became more globalised and now the migrants coming to Melbourne bring those roots here. Certainly, the emergence of tango here now is a result of there being a resurgence in Buenos Aires. Tango became dormant after the dictatorship in the 1960s - 1970s but then in the 1990s the dance became more localised and popular again and was quickly followed by the music. I think people getting into it again here is a result of that.

The tango music and dance serve many changing functions. Tango has, e.g., been used in therapy to help people reach a more harmonious state of mind. Do we need tango to better cope with life’s many ups and downs? I think the resurgence of the tango in Buenos Aires was a youth-driven movement. Some feel tango has become the new rock music, a new vehicle for protest. But then there have also been studies around tango used in a more therapeutic sense, as a music used with people suffering Alzheimer’s disease, etc. Engaging in tango is a kind of retromania, a way to reach back to the past while connecting with the present.

As tango embraces so many different themes reflecting the human condition with its many griefs and sorrows but also happiness and joy, when you perform or interpret the tango do you take on different personalities depending on the piece you play and the beats and rhythms of this song or piece? Now that’s interesting. Well I think now, like we were saying with the kind of youth-driven revival tango can be quite edgy and I think that is something people don’t really associate when they hear it. There’s a bit of a juxtaposition between the old nostalgic type of tango (and the new vibes) and certainly for those of us who understand what the songs are all about that definitely gives much more of a depth to the tango experience.

Stephen Cuttriss (with kind permission by Stephen Cuttriss)

What is your final message to our Segmento readers?

Grazie mille, muchas gracias, and thanks for your many insights!

Find a tango class and start dancing because there is nothing nicer than connecting with someone to live music and the feelings and sentiments of tango. And learn some lunfardo, it presents a nice connection between cultures, and there’s that old Italian mysticism that still exists in Argentina today.

ISSUE XIX

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Hayley J. Egan

ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT EXTINCTION REBELLION EXPLAINS HOW TO COUNTER THE CLIMATE AND ECOLOGICAL CRISES

Above, below and in the next page Extinction Rebellion movement in Italy. A group of activists in Bologna

David Attenborough, Pope Frances, and Al

The media was calling it ‘The Climate Election’, but months have passed since new Government has formed,

Gore. These household names might not have

and according to Miriam Robinson, Australian representative of the Extinction Rebellion movement, neither of

much in common, but they are all speaking

the major parties has proposed sufficient action for the environment.

the views of a growing proportion of ordinary people, who are becoming ever more concerned about the state of our planet. It has become the norm to notice people using reusable bags, keep-cups, and paying attention to

is to create a mass civil disobedience uprising. Here in Australia, for many years we’ve had people stopping different projects, but there is no more time for these dedicated people to be out, living in trees, working on little projects. The idea now is to get normal people, grannies, families, students… all types of people, to rise up and get involved in civil disobedience. We are aiming to get 3.5% of the population actively involved, because this is the number that has been shown to initiate changes in policy.’

their travel habits. It is, however, also becoming more

Extinction Rebellion is a Global Movement that began in the UK in 2018, and has since produced the publication

widely accepted that individual behavioral changes

‘This is Not a Drill.’ They are inspired by other global grassroots movements such as Occupy, and aim to mobilise

will not be enough to get us out of this mess. Many of

the population into urgent action to address the climate and ecological emergencies.

us are becoming more outspoken about the need for systemic change. Before our recent federal election in Australia, more than 80% of voters said that they thought that our Government was not doing enough to fight climate change.

In Australia (Climate Change), has become quite partisan,’ says Miriam. ‘With Extinction Rebellion, the idea

Marco Bertaglia, representative of the Extinction Rebellion movement in Italy, is a working environmental scientist. His involvement with Extinction Rebellion came about because he has been worried for many years, and is more aware than most that we are running out of time. He was eager to give a voice to the demands of this global movement, which are that: Governments tell the truth about the Climate and Ecological Crises, and that immediate action be taken to halt the effects of the climate and ecological crises.

Distinguishing the climate crisis from the ecological crisis is important to the Extinction Rebellion movement. As Miriam explains, ‘you can plant a pine tree plantation, and that will help to reduce carbon, but it does nothing to protect biodiversity.’ She goes on to explain that the extinction of animals, including bees is directly related to use of pesticides, herbicides and the loss of biodiversity. ‘We could fix the climate,’ she explains. ‘but we could still be seeing all this extinction and loss of biodiversity.’ Marco agrees, and he too presses the importance of the ecological crisis.

‘This is our last chance,’ he says. ‘We have seen that holding marches for one day doesn’t work, (civil disobedience) must continue day after day.’ By definition, civil disobedience is a non-violent refusal to obey laws for the purpose of protest. On the 7th of August, The Guardian reported that 56 protesters between the ages of 19 and 72 had been arrested in Brisbane for obstructing traffic. They were protesting government inaction on the climate and ecological crises with particular attention to the approval of the Adani coal mine in North Queensland.

Marco says that this type of disruption is the only way forward, citing British Greens MEP Molly Scott Cato, who says:

Extinction Rebellion Italy will nonetheless be

Both Marco and Miriam insist that change cannot be

participating in Global Action on 7th October. It’s

achieved without major systemic overhaul, and that

a movement that in Europe is being called ‘Rebels

this means that people need to come together.

Without Borders’ where smaller groups are coming together in the capitals to create major disruption. ‘We have decided to participate in the international action,’ says Marco, ‘because we need to be participating in the action to attract people.’

‘Individual action has not been sufficient’, Marco says, and he is adamant that this particular burden should not fall on the shoulders of the individual. ‘We live in a toxic system, but no single person is to blame.’

ISSUE XIX

‘A powerful alliance of wealthy individuals and multinational corporations, backed by complicit politicians, has subverted the political process and blocked action. This is why, whoever we are and whatever we do, we are coming together now to say we are prepared to engage in civil disobedience to force urgent climate action.’

In Australia the action planned for October is to be known as the ‘Spring Rebellion’ and Miriam says it could go on for a few weeks.

Marco is passionate about the cause but he is understandably nervous about civil disobedience in Italy. ‘Police in Italy are not necessarily as nice as London’, he says. ‘We have a government in Italy that is reverting back to fascism, and that is a problem. People are afraid to protest.’

‘We will be supporting the school strikers in September, but the kids will lead, and we will support,’ she says. ‘Then we will be looking at participating in global action in all of our Capital cities.’

Jenna Lo Bianco

THE MAN, THE MYTH, THE MAGIC: Q&A WITH SIGNOR MONT Anthony Montesano, Melbourne-based couturier, has fascinated me for years. His work is iconic and is as easily recognisable as his laugh and hilarious social commentary. He is one of a kind, and today he’s ours to devour.

Anthony, tell us a little bit about your family background and Italian heritage. I was born in Melbourne to Italian parents. My dad came across from Capistrano, Calabria as a 2 year old, and my mum came with her family from Marsiconuovo, Basilicata as a 4 year old. I have always been proudly Italian; in my mindset, style and love of hosting others. I have to say, after a short visit to Italy in 2011, this was truly cemented and strengthened. Suddenly every piece of my being made sense. Looking around at the Italian style, the way of life, the architecture, the mannerisms, the beauty, it all made me understand who I was so much more. Things that I used to suppress, such as my love for excessive detail in design, for the antiminimalism that is rare in Australia, now felt more accessible to me.

How has your heritage shaped your creative journey to date? Being a true nostalgic, my heritage has formed the backbone of my style. Very rarely do I try and predict trends. I much rather research Italian history for inspiration, and visiting Italy was a further turning point in developing this sense of nostalgia, seeing it all first-hand. My love of story has also played a huge part. Hearing my nonna’s stories of her own wedding gown having a 5 metre train and being the talk of the village must’ve subconsciously taken root, with me becoming synonymous for larger-thanlife trains. Even the ingrained need for my family to always show la bella figura, has cemented itself in my consciousness, and now I don’t rest until my brides are guaranteed to make that bella figura they so long for. I have always been very architecturally minded, and my gowns most definitely reflect that. I constantly find myself trying to deconstruct laces and reposition them to recreate the baroque shapes perfected centuries ago in Italy through the architecture. I still find it so incredible that the Italian style has endured all these centuries and can move me so, even though the world has changed beyond comprehension.

Have you always known you wanted to pursue a career in couture? Funnily enough, I had always known I’d end up making bridal couture. I was sewing bridal gowns on barbie dolls at the age of 5. I had sewn so many barbie brides by my 10th birthday that I named my company ‘Bambola Bridal Wear’. But then, growing up in a traditional family, I became aware of the masculine social norms and started to suppress my passion, reserving it for behind closed doors. I completed an education degree and taught in primary schools for 7 years, but the pull of my passion for sewing was stronger and quickly consumed me, leaving me no choice but to leave teaching.

Anthony dressing his sister on her wedding day Photo Rachael Ogle

What place does Italian culture have in your creative process? I would say my innate knowledge of la bella figura is both my greatest asset and largest cause of stress as a designer. Whenever I design a gown, I’m always thinking: ‘Would her mum, her nonna, her zia like it?’ I’m always catering to not only the bride, but all the guests, to ensure it’s a crowd pleaser. Often a gown will already look beautiful, but I’ll spend the last days before the wedding, adding some extra feature to really make it stand out. I design for a very elegant, respectable clientele and they only come to me for my unmistakably Italian aesthetic. I think my gowns are reflective of Italian culture, in that they are certainly not described as minimalist or simple, but fit in quite well with lavish European style weddings that Italians are so used to.

How would you describe your style? I would say it’s above all classic. Nostalgic of the golden age of couture and of baroque sensibilities. It’s a mixture of the Medici-esque opulence, with strongly architectural shapes. My embellishments are most certainly a nod to the level of ornamentation in the Italian Renaissance, with a ‘more-is-more’ approach, although I do try and do this tastefully. I’m obsessed with recreating baroque shapes and curves that intersect and rotate to create emotion. My signature gowns all have this in common. You could easily trace the lines of how I place the lace and it wouldn’t take long to find some of the exact same shapes in the archives of Baroque architecture.

Anthony Montesano Photos Rachael Ogle

Explain the name ‘Signor Mont’.

Signor Mont is also a nod to my days as a teacher, Mr Montesano. In Italian, Signor Montesano, shortened to Mont. Thirdly, Signor Mont is my mask. I am quite a shy person, surprising to anyone who follows my social media. Signor Mont is like my alter-ego, a confidence I bring out, and it gives me a public identity that helps me to marry my shy side with the designer that seeks to be known.

What are you most proud of to date? Without doubt my sister’s wedding gown. We collected 170 year old hand made Burano Lace and commissioned an image of the church she married in to be made by the matriarch of one of the last remaining Burano Lace houses still operating on the Italian island. The gown would have thousands of hours-worth of irreplaceable handmade lace, made by women in around the 1850s in Italy. The thought that so many artisans have touched my sister’s gown over 2 centuries moves me to tears, as well as the fact that I was the artisan to put it all together. With scenes of a gondola on the canal, birds, animals, lovers, musical instruments and countless other images and motifs, I cannot imagine another gown containing the same level of curation of laces all handmade in Italy today.

What’s so unique about your voice in today’s society? Although I have discussed la bella figura, I’d say my lack of regard for it in my own life is something that makes me memorable and sometimes infamous. I think in a time when posting your highlights reel to Instagram has become the norm, being authentic, through your insecurities, the beautiful imperfections, the not so amazing parts of life, is the best way to stand out. And how wonderful it is when people accept you for this, as they love you as you come, authentically.

ISSUE XIX

Signor Mont is a combination of a few things. Firstly, and most importantly, he is a mythical figure, an old couturier, from the past. He is like the spirit I channel through my work, summoning the master couturiers of days gone by through every trial and error discovery of corsetry I make. He is like my guiding angel, helping me revive an art that has been largely lost, the art of making women elegant and fitting them impeccably.

Details of the gown featuring 170 year old Venetian lace Photo Rachael Ogle

I think my style, which also forms my voice, is a revolt against the modern minimalism which has come to dominate. I make no secret of my rejection of minimalism, particularly in wedding gowns. Whilst restraint is important, to me, laziness and a lack of effort is not. Maybe it’s the European mentality that has been cemented since birth. You go to effort for such things, no easy way out of laziness, punto e basta.

Benedetta Ferrara

ASTRONOMER LORENZO SPINA FROM FLORENCE TO MELBOURNE TO STUDY THE STARS Italy has again become a country of emigrants. Today, a large number are highly educated people who take their talent abroad in search of better career opportunities and professional benefits. Thirty thousand Italian researchers leave each year, while only three thousand qualified scientists migrate to Italy. In recent years, the media, policymakers and scholars have used the term ‘brain drain’ to describe this phenomenon. Among the top reasons for emigrating were over-regulated bureaucracy, rigid hierarchies and scientific fragmentation such as better salaries and more investment.

Lorenzo Spina is an Italian astronomer from Florence who is currently working at Monash University. According to him, Australia is a place that ‘allows all the researchers that work here to achieve their dreams.’

Above and at the bottom: Lorenzo at the ESO (European Southern Observatory) in Lasilla, Chile where he makes his astronomical observations

How did you get into astronomy? Since I was a child, I have always been passionate about science. I was maybe ten years old when my father gave me my first telescope. I remember seeing Saturn for the first time and I was amazed and fascinated by it. Saturn doesn’t appear like a ‘dot’ from the telescope, as everyone might think, it is actually highly visible. It is possible to observe the rings and even its moon, Titan. Since then, I decided that my path would be intertwined with the stars, the sky and the universe. I graduated from the University of Florence, then continued with a PhD in Astronomy, obtaining a scholarship. For my thesis I studied for five months in Baltimore at ‘The Space Telescope Science Institute’, which is the science operations center for the relevant ‘Hubble Space Telescope’. Then I lived in Brazil for two years, working as a researcher at the ‘University of São Paulo’. In November 2017 I moved to Melbourne to work at Monash University.

What’s the main focus of your research at Monash? My aim is to determine the chemical composition of stars in order to study the evolution of our own Galaxy. The light of stars, in fact, contains information about their physical properties (temperature, mass, radius) and can also be used to unveil the presence of planetary systems similar to our own. Most of the atoms of which we are formed or that form the air that we breath or the objects that we use everyday, had not existed in the past. They have been synthesised in stars and have been released over time in the space. Part of my work is to study how this chemical evolution occurred, which are the processes that permitted to our Galaxy to change over time and to be the place that we are observing now.

Why did you pick Melbourne for the next step in your scientific career? Australia has a small community of astronomers, but made up of great professionals, internationally renowned. It represented a great opportunity for my career growth. Working in Melbourne is very rewarding. Universities have access to many funds that allow researchers to travel to deepen their studies and analysis, attend world conferences and introduce me as a researcher. Travelling is vital for a research work. If I had stayed in Italy, I would not have had the chance to learn about new analysis techniques and be exposed to new ideas. So you haven’t left Italy for purely economic reasons. I could have stayed in Italy to work, but I wouldn’t have grown as a researcher. Those who decide to stay, usually do so because of the connection that have to their professor - he or she is the one who dictates the line and the young astronomers follow the directives. Here in Australia I have greater freedom. I work in a research group, but I am also my own leader. I decide which tools to use and how to use them. I take the initiative but I have the opportunity to also confer with my colleagues. Additionally, there are not many positions available in Italy for scientists and researchers outside of universities and institutes. But I’m not fleeing from Italy. I love traveling and thanks to my work, I have the opportunity to demonstrate my skills and the excellence of Italian university education. Obviously, I know that brain circulation’s costs and benefits are hotly debated but as long as migration is not permanent and ‘brains’ return to the country of origin, it can be a win-win scenario. I think that the Italian government should really be able over time to reabsorb the number of doctorates it has produced and exploit this strong presence in the world.

Is your future in Australia? I’d like to stay here. The Australian way of working is well-balanced, and that’s something I particularly appreciate. In São Paulo, life was dedicated only to business, people started running early in the morning to work till late. Here in Melbourne my supervisors often ‘force me’ to have my two days off a week. Because there is more than just work. There is a strong respect for the working world and I take advantage of my weekends to explore this magnificent continent, above all because I love hiking and Australian nature allows it.

What’s next for you? One goal is very close, in a week I will be in Chile collecting data for my research and will return to Melbourne for the analysis. I will work at night, how romantically everyone imagines astronomers do: a man in glasses peering up at the Universe through the lens of a huge telescope.

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