Following the 2011 project Destini Svelati ( “Fates Revealed” ), with which the Museum of Marble came alive for three days with lectures, workshops, cultural activities, and the important donation of two works by video artist Mario Sasso, the cultural association Ars Gratia Artis presents DATABASE, a year-long schedule of events specifically catered to the Museum of Marble.
Museum of Marble - Photo by Albrecht Tübke
Our mission is to reinterpret the Museum, and we plan to do so from multiple perspectives, which start from the public and again circle back to it, along the way encountering the varied expressions of contemporary art called upon to give a new reading of our specific territorial heritage. In fact, the DATABASE project derives from the need to create a platform on which to build a new sense of belonging to the city of Carrara, by promoting the Carrara Museum of Marble, which constitutes the point of access to the city, and further enriches the understanding of the history of our people upon the return from the evocative journey within the heart of the marble quarries.
Our intent is to encourage players active in various areas of interest in our city, and to create a harmony by carefully rebuilding ties between businesses, institutions, and the land’s resources. It is through the support of both the businesses and the administration of the city of Carrara that we are able to build local and International collaborations. In the same way as an actual digital archive, DATABASE is able to communicate, preserve, and also divulge our history through contemporary codes.
Our program is meant to be a supplement which interlocks with the Marble Weeks and Convivere events and the Biennial Exhibition of Sculpture of Carrara, acting as a continuous thread that connects and gives continuity to the existing cultural offerings of our city. We envision an interactive partaking of our heritage, that grows more and more wide-spread, in which all citizens may follow their curiosity to discover new things, feeling they are part of a system of values which they have proudly helped to create.