There is an unwritten rule in the art world: when logistics decides to go its own way, a legend is usually born. In 2014 everything is ready for Davide Cristofaro’s debut at “Welcome To London”, from 8 to 13 December at La Galleria Pall Mall. The catalogues are already printed, fresh from the press, with the page devoted to Rosita “The Magic of the Dream”, mixed media on canvas from 2013, 80×80. Pity nobody reckoned with an Italian museum, where Rosita and Morena are hanging quietly on display, enjoying the day.
When it comes to packing the painting for London, someone at the museum must have decided a little suspense was needed: they take Morena, seal her in a crate and ship her to Pall Mall in place of the rightful owner. The result? Visitors leaf through the catalogue looking for a dreamy figure among poppies and, raising their eyes to the wall, find themselves facing the gold of another painting.
A logistical thrill that, as luck would have it, pleases curator Elizabeth Mitchell D’Anna so much that she calls Morena back the following year, for the Royal Arts Prize. Talk about a successful mistake.
2014: the (improvised) debut at “Welcome To London”
The exhibition is held in the Royal Opera Arcade, a few steps from Trafalgar Square and Pall Mall: with the agency Interartex, it is a welcome showcase presenting different visual languages to London’s public and collectors. Both London exhibitions are curated by the same management, that of the ROA Gallery and La Galleria Pall Mall. Davide is among the artists, with Morena “Warm Your Heart with Our Dreams”, mixed media on canvas from 2012.
The intimate, refined portrait gets noticed: the gold leaf is covered with raised dots, and the bright greens of the scarf and the softness of the drapery converse with the brick wall of the room.
2015: the return to the Royal Arts Prize
From 4 to 10 April 2015, a few weeks after the Galerie Thuillier in Paris, Morena returns to London for the Royal Arts Prize 2015 group exhibition, in the same arcade. At the entrance there is a red carpet.
Showing the same painting a year later lets collectors and visitors rediscover its details: the drop earrings, the fluid geometries and the almost sacred atmosphere of the ornamental background, closed at the top by a black motif with a Moorish flavour.
Gianna, a friend of Davide’s who lives in London, stops in front of the work. On the table are Davide’s leaflets.
Special thanks
Heartfelt thanks go to La Galleria Pall Mall, to the Royal Opera Arcade Gallery and in particular to curator Elizabeth Mitchell D’Anna, who welcomed Morena in 2014 and wanted her back in 2015: their support turned a stroke of fate into a return.
Read “Paris 2015: art without borders at the Galerie Thuillier”
