When I awoke on this rainy Friday, I bemoaned the fact I just wanted to visit the library across the street from our old Paris apartment. As a consolation, we went to one of my favorite places: The Labyrinth and Museum of Franco Maria Ricci, just outside of Parma |
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 | Pippistrello (Bat) Laurie Pessemier acrylic/paper 11 x 8.5" 28 x 21 cm 125.00 |
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| Franco Maria Ricci (1937-2020) was an important publisher, bibliophile, art collector, and also the creative mind behind the Labirinto della Masone, the world’s largest maze, in Fontanellato, Italy. The museum itself is a collection of the beautiful and unusual. There are sculptures in marble, bronze, terra cotta and stone that emphasize the expressiveness of Italian artists. There are paintings and drawings that span centuries. And FMR’s printed output and design line the walls of part of the museum (we are encouraged to sit and peruse the publications). |
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 | Yellow Petunias Blair Pessemier Acrylic/canvas 20 x 8" 50 x 20cm 425.00 |
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| In fact, we went to see a show of the work of the little known Luigi Serafini. These art pieces, from drawing to painting to sculpture, are somewhere between surrealism and comics, futurist and dada art. Serafini drew pictures of the creation of the world, using his favorite items: eggs, skeletons and rainbows. They make one laugh – rabbits taking off their furs for cleaning and turning into chickens, for example. Or a sculpture of “do not enter” signs in fine porcelain entering a larger do not enter sign; the Last Judgement as an egg throwing contest; a happy alligator replacing a pretty girl in her bed. Two inch round fried ceramic eggs dot the walls of the gallery. These images are all impeccably executed. It was a breath of fresh, laughing-gas-filled air. |
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Dancers On watercolor paper; on printed page Laurie Pessemier approx 8 x 11.5" 21 x 28cm 100.00 ea |
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| The longer I live in Italy, the closer I come to understanding the culture. I am studying each and every aspect, peeling the “cipolla” (onion) and finding each layer more beautiful than the last. Italian culture (understandably) gets bogged down in Renaissance Art and Architecture, and it’s sometimes hard to see what else is there. Especially the more contemporary things. But Blair and I have been seeing so many 20th and 21st century artists and designers we really like. It must be like having a super talented parent, and generations to come feel they can’t eclipse what’s been done. But there are so many great things: Gio Ponti, di Pisis, Depero, Franco Maria Ricci. |
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Red Petunias Laurie Fox Pessemier Acrylic/vintage paper 8 x 11.5" 28 x 21cm 100 each or 4 for 325.00 |
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FMR’s classic Jaguar XKE (described by Enzo Ferrari as “The most beautiful car ever made”) in the atrium of the museum/labyrinth complex always catches Blair’s eye. I take the minute to step into the labyrinth to listen to the bamboo. It tells me “keep on”.
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by the Sea Laurie Pessemier acrylic/paper 40 x 18 140 each |
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NOTES: All of our work is now available as reproductions, on paper, canvas and framed.
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INVITING All Artists to present their Work: Paint, Literature, Crafts, Food....
Pessemier's Sunday Salon
Weekly on Sunday No Reservation Necessary
How it works: Bring a piece of your ART: that could be visual, like painting or printmaking; or literary, as in poetry or prose; or crafts, like metalwork or knitting; or food, or music. Something you made, or feel particularly inspired by. You have about 5 minutes to present, and we'll ooh, ahh, or answer questions you have. You can also come and see how we work before diving in. Just show up on Zoom at a minute or two before the hour.
No selling, no networking until after everyone has presented. NO POLITICS please. |
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