Join Fosco Maraini’s wife Mieko Namiki as she gives a personal glimpse into the life of Marani; his travels, feelings and memories – taking us on a journey of his love of Japan and the Ama. In Italian and Japanese. Space is limited, please make a reservation to get a seat!
[Speaker]
Mieko Namiki
Alessia Borellini – “Museo delle Culture” of Lugano
[Venue]
Gion Shinbashi Traditional building in Gion Shinbashi
(PASS THE BATON KYOTO GION/Opening in summer 2015)
>Exhibition information
[Fee]
Free
[Program name for reservation]
A Love of Japan: Memories of Fosco Maraini.
Fosco Maraini
Fosco Maraini (b. 1912) focused on at least five different areas of study during his lifetime: anthropology, Oriental studies (he obtained the chair for teaching Japanese and Japanese literature at the Università di Firenze), mountaineering, literature (which he practised extensively and with international success), and finally the photography of individuals, cultures and landscapes. He always observed with a delicate gaze, like the “Cittadino della Luna in Visita d’Istruzione sulla Terra” (Citizen of the Moon on an Educational Visit on Earth), the so-called “Citluvit,” who silently observes and records every single thing. He was also passionate about the objects of his study, although he remained detached from them, for “understanding is the final outcome of the whole process. Maraini passed away in Florence, Italy, in 2004.
Alessia Borellini
Alessia Borellini graduated in History of Contemporary Art from the Università degli Studi of Bologna. After a period of specialization in management of cultural activities, in 2007 she joined the Staff of the Museo delle Culture di Lugano. Her main interests are the History of collecting, Exoticism, Primitivism and the relationship between Western culture and ethnic arts, themes about which she has published three monographs and some ten scientific papers in journals and edited volumes. Since 2009 she is responsible for the «Esovisioni» series, devoted to the photography of the exotic in the works of the great masters of the twentieth century, which has resulted to date in nine exhibitions, reiterated in 31 different venues in Denmark, Italy and Switzerland.