Darren Almond in Naples, double exhibition between Cappella Sansevero and Galleria Artiaco

La San Severo Chapel of Naples, famous for its baroque and the suggestive Veiled Christ, is preparing to host for the first time a dialogue between contemporary art and tradition. From 22 January 2025, the English artist Darren Almond presents his personal exhibition “Rags”, a project produced in collaboration with the Alfonso Artiaco GalleryThe exhibition is accompanied by a second event, “Songbirds and Willows”, hosted in the same gallery in Piazzetta Nilo.
The Inspiration Behind “Rags”
The central idea of “Rags” was born from the photographs taken by Almond in his London studio Lucian Freud, a famous painter who died in 2011. The English artist immortalised the dirty cloths used by Freud to clean his brushes, transforming them into large mental landscapes. The connection between the painted cloths and the sculptural folds of the Veiled Christ of Giuseppe Sanmartino it is evident and represents the meeting point between past and present, between life and death.
“I also applied a sort of shroud, spreading a veil of paint and colour on the rag canvases,” explains Almond, underlining the reference to marble lightness which characterizes the works of the Sansevero Chapel.
A dialogue between art and spirituality
The exhibition “Rags” is set in a unique context, the baroque jewel of the Sansevero Chapel, where six large-scale works will be exhibited in the main nave. The observer is invited to immerse himself in the details of the transformed photographs, recalling the dynamic materiality of the draperies and the delicacy of the veils of Modesty and the Veiled Christ.
Maria Alessandra Masucci, director of the Museo Cappella Sansevero, explains: “We welcome contemporary art as a continuation of the message of the Prince of Sansevero, a visionary innovator. Almond’s works reflect the dialogue between life and death that characterizes this place”.
The exhibition “Songbirds and Willows”
Simultaneously, the Alfonso Artiaco Gallery home “Songbirds and Willows”, an exploration of Almond's art through different artistic languages. The second appointment completes a journey that winds through the heart of the ancient center of Naples, creating a dialogue between sacred space and exhibition space.
Darren Almond and the bond with Naples
Darren Almond has a 20-year relationship with Naples and the Galleria Alfonso Artiaco, having already held six exhibitions in the city. “I spent an hour every day in the Cappella Sansevero. That magnificent marble work stays with you forever,” says Almond, describing the impact that the Veiled Christ has had on his art.
His works celebrate time as a circular concept, challenging the linear conception of Western society. As Alfonso Artiaco explains, “Almond lifts the thin veil that divides life and death, inviting the viewer to reflect on their memories in a timeless context.”
- Where: San Severo Chapel
- When: from Wednesday 22 January 2025 to Monday 17 March 2025