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march 02, 2017 - Davide Groppi

Spotlight on Guercino

The dome of the Cathedral in #piacenza has been illuminated in a new and innovative way as part of the event, “Guercino in Piacenza”.

Why illuminate works of art?
Why light a work of art that was conceived with the idea of being viewed using only natural light, or at most the light from candles or a lantern? The risk is to create an effect that was unintended by its creator, thereby falsifying what the art was meant to be.
It is only by understanding the methods and intentions used in creating a work of art that one can find significance in it
and can tell story of a work of art through illumination. This is the idea behind photo-graphy: writing with light.
It is exactly what we intended to do with the dome of Piacenza’s Cathedral. The idea was to tell a story that would allow people
to understand that light is not only vision; it is also communication, emotion, wonder. 

Piacenza is paying homage to Giovanni Francesco Barbieri best known as Guercino, this year by organising a spectacular event that will invol- ve the Catherdral of #piacenza and the Farnese Palace. It is a unique journey through the sacred and the profane.

Davide Groppi was contacted by the organisers of the event to illuminate the works of the 17th Century master using the latest in state-of-the-art technology. The works of art by Guercino on exhibit include 20 masterpieces located in the Ducal Chapel of the Farnese Palace, but overall the frescos on the dome of Piacenza’s Cathedral, which visitors will be able to climb up and view more closely only during the course of this special event.

The lighting project involves utilisation of luminous diode projectors that exalt the chromatic characteristics of the artwork, conceived ad hoc and positioned around the perimeter or the upper part of the dome. A “neutral” kind of illumination of the space has thus been created by #davidegroppi, respecting the original intentions of the Artist.
The six Prophets of Guercino, the lunettes with episodes from the life of Jesus as a boy, the beautiful Sibyls and the drum come back to life in all their colourful splendour and majesty.

Thanks to a sophisticated system of dome illumination, visitors will be able to witness the history of the decorations through its illumination, with sequential lighting of the various works of art, from the most antique dome vaults by Morazzone, to the Prophets of Guercino up to the lunettes and the frieze.
This new way of lighting allows spectators a more true-to-life rendition of the colours and chiaroscuro of the artwork on the dome. 

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