FABRIZIO CORVI
"The Liferoom" represents twelve turning points. Twelve times when life requires of each of us a definite decision. From the temptation to the dream, from the wait to the challenge, from the deception to the redemption, each of these moments is represented by an image permeated with allegories and historical, mythological and artistic references. From a formal point of view, the composition, color and light of the images were inspired by the great Italian painters of the 17th century.
The images "The Dream" and "The Temptation" in this series were exhibited at the Italian Pavilion of the 54th Biennale di Venezia (2011).
In 2016, the picture "The Dream" has been included in the collection of the Library of Congress of U.S.A.
THE DREAM
Inspired by the "Dead Christ" of Andrea Mantegna, The Dream represents the exact moment preceding death. While the man who dies is at the same time on the bed and on the scale to go elsewhere, he has around him the characters that represent his life: the sacred love, the profane love and the playful life. Death is behind him waiting. On the back of the stage there is an installation by the italian artist Maurizio Gallo.
THE TEMPTATION
Evil shows its most charming face while his real appearance (visible from the mirror) is totally expressionless. The reference to the biblical story of Adam and Eve is obvious, but the apples in this image are everywhere because evil marks its territory of damnation.
THE REDEMPTION
Christ returns to earth and realizes that men who were to represent him not behaved well. In the scene there are two sculptures created by the talented brothers Scuotto (Naples)
THE WAITING
He expected her throughout his life, he followed her with his scratched suitcase and his now faded flowers, but the desire is still alive in his hand. Used on the background is a painting of the painter Enza Messini
THE FLAG
It is a metaphor about the war. The goddess of destruction has ended his mission and all the men are dead. She is alone to talk with the spirit of human destruction which is a joker, because war is not a serious matter: the war is just a game of few powerful men who challenge each other for the most useless victory.
The Joker is a sculpture by Titti Caroleo.
THE STREET
They are real people living in a wonderful small town in central Italy called Sermoneta where Fabrizio Corvi has lived for ten years. They are characters who really inspired the conception of THE LIFEROOM with their special and suggestive everyday life.
THE VANITY
This is a remake of the Rokeby Venus (also known as Venus and Cupid) by Diego Velasquez. In the original painting, Cupid holding up the mirror to a naked Venus. In photography, Cupid is replaced by a gramophone playing "I know what I like in your wardrobe" by Genesis. On the scene is the score of the song and the original disk envelope.
THE DECEPTION
This is a sexual metaphor. Big butterfly attracts fish with a trick, but she does not eat them; she kills them just for fun.
THE MASK
This image depicts the moment when Charlie Chaplin sews his mask to become Charlot and be able to enter the gate of glory. The triumph in show business seems playful (the door guards are children), but it is not: the children's weapons are true and the door is short so that everyone who wants to cross the threshold must bow himself a little. The portrait of Charlie Chaplin is Titti Caroleo.
THE CREATION
This is a portrait of the Italian poet Barbara Pinchi that when she was a child she dreamed that the fireflies came out of his mouth. The creation takes place only with the light, no one can create anything starting from the darkness.
And God said
“Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning - the first day. (Genesis)
THE CHALLENGE
The strongest challenge is a challenge for women. Men are not so competitive and they have the tendency to find some form of agreement, but when a woman is fighting another woman, every challenge becomes a big challenge. That's why in the image there are two big women. On the scene there is a work of the Korean sculptress Hisu Choi.
THE JUDGMENT
When Hera, Athena and Aphrodite asked Zeus to decide who was the most beautiful of the goddesses, he knew at once that he could not make that choice because Hera was his wife, and you know, some wives are jealous and susceptible ... so he asked Paris to choose, but Paris was too young to choose between wisdom, power and love. He naturally chose the love ... a fake choice from a fake man, so in the image Paride is a dummy: a fake man who made a fake choice but started a real war.