Homo Faber 2024, the exhibition on high craftsmanship not to be missed in Venice

What is the first thing that comes to mind when someone talks about craftsmanship ? If you answer immediately you probably thought of small, shabby workshops where marked hands move industriously. In Venice , however, there is someone who is radically changing the narrative of contemporary craftsmanship.

From 1 to 30 September, on the Island of San Giorgio Maggiore, the spaces of the Giorgio Cini Foundation will host the third edition of Homo Faber , the biennial organized by the Michelangelo Foundation for Creativity and Craftsmanship in partnership with the Fondazione Cologni dei Mestieri d'Arte to promote and support the extraordinary wealth of knowledge and talents of today's artisans. The event debuted in 2018 with an excellent response from 60 thousand visitors, then the pandemic forced a review of the schedule, postponing the second event to 2022 and returning in 2024 with a great deal of new features.

For the first time the artifacts come from all over the world - the two previous editions had investigated specific geographical areas - for the first time a common thread has been chosen and for the first time two artistic directors have been called to orchestrate everything. The Journey of Life , the journey of life, is the poetic theme that the vice president of the Michelangelo Foundation, Hanneli Rupert, launched to the team of selectors. And which has become the title of the event that can be visited by booking your 16 euro ticket (note that the availability of access on site is limited, it is better to move in advance). After which the director Luca Guadagnino and the architect Nicolò Rosmarini have designed the path, creating ten areas, ten key moments in the life of each of us, from birth, to childhood, to celebrations, to the legacies of family trades, to love, to travel, to nature, to dreams, to dialogues between different worlds, up to the encounter with death and the afterlife. All of this is scattered with over 800 objects made by more than 400 artisans from 70 countries around the world and immersed in the extraordinary setting of the Giorgio Cini Foundation, some of whose spaces have been used for the first time, such as the room where large black and white photographs bear witness to the stages of the restoration.

So far the numbers and the due credit first of all to Johann Rupert and Franco Cologni, creators of the Michelangelo Foundation, for having understood the importance of protecting and valorizing a savoir-faire increasingly threatened by industrialized production. And to the executive director of the foundation, Alberto Cavalli for the enthusiasm and commitment shown at every moment.

The visual, tactile, auditory solicitations of The Journey of Life are so many that it is impossible to dwell on them all as you delve into the path, curated for part of the gardens by landscape designer Antonio Perazzi. Equally titanic would be the undertaking of choosing the favorite room, because each environment triggers reactions, evokes memories, arouses different emotions. Perhaps this is why in inviting the public to vote for their favourite pieces via the app, the option of multiple choice is given, while at the end of the exhibition the authors of the three most appreciated works will be awarded a prize of 10 thousand euros each, thanks to the contribution of Via Arno, a company born to create a link between the masters of art and those interested in purchasing their works.

It is worth visiting Homo Faber 2024 for the aura of play, enchantment, magic, and at times even anxiety masterfully orchestrated by the Guadagnino/Rosmarini duo. Because it is a feast of beauty so necessary in these dark times. Because it reminds us how phenomenal humanity is if, instead of building rockets, bombs and tanks that spread hatred, it creates objects that spread love. The Journey of Life above all offers the pleasure of surprise, wonder, amazement, typical of childhood. And for a day, even if only for a few hours,   let's go back to being children.

Scroll and discover the works on display at Homo Faber 2024