With a great celebration, the City presented the comprehensive value enhancement of the italy squarewhich included the inauguration of the central source and a series of sculptures by the artist Orlando Leytesin homage to Dante Alighieri.
The event was attended by the mayor Ulpiano Suarez, the governor Rodolfo Suarezthe Italian ambassador in the country, Fabrizio Lucentini; and the Italian consul in the province, Piero Vaira. Also present, among other provincial and municipal authorities, were the Minister of Culture and Tourism, Nora Vicarthe Secretary of Tourism and Culture of the City, Felipe Rinaldoand the president of the Deliberative Council of the City, Horace Migliozzi.
Hundreds of residents and tourists did not miss the event and, despite the rain, enjoyed a night that included live shows with lyrical music, the performance of the municipal ballet and some surprises.
Next to Consulate of Italy and the Foundation fonditalia, the municipality carried out one of the most heartfelt actions for the Italian community in the province. It is neither more nor less than the installation of a set of sculptural works on the fountain, called “All for love”title inspired by the final sentence of the “Divine Comedy“, of Dante Alighieria 700 years of his passage to immortality. It is a legacy of Italian culture worthy of being represented in a public space.
An important aspect of the work is that it seeks to break schemes showing something different, with dramatic sculptures that draw the viewer closer through their gestures and expressions. As a novel element, it incorporates a illuminated sculpture completely like a lighthouse.
This initiative is a tribute of international importance, which was carried out together with the Italian Consulate, with which it seeks to commemorate the Italian artist and revalue the square, generating a point of cultural attraction – literary.
Planning and development of the work
The work was carried out in two parallel stages:
- The nine sculptures were modeled in the workshop, which were later moved and placed in the fountain by the sculptor Orlando Leytes. The modeling technique was in direct cement. It consisted of making the structures of the eight ribbed iron sculptures of numbers 6, 8 and 10 respectively, to then apply a preparation made up of the following elements: cement with fine sand, water-repellent, plastic fiber and accelerators that guarantee their permanence over time, and then model them as if they were clay. In addition, there is a ninth luminous sculpture located at the top of the ramp, which represents paradise, which was made of direct resin so that it has transparency.
- Intervention of the fountain in charge of the municipality: internal walls were removed, the necessary plumbing and lighting were installed, internal repairs of leaks and fissures were made, paving stones were placed on the outside of the walls on the edge of the fountain; A spiral ramp was built in reinforced concrete (start) and a metal structure covered in expanded and plastered material (the rest) for the location of the sculptures.
History of Italy square
Formerly it was called Plaza Lima, until September 17, 1918, through Provincial Law 727, it was called “Plaza Italia”, in honor of said nation and the close historical and cultural Italian-Argentine relationship. Currently it is a symbol not only for Italians and descendants, but also for the Mendoza community. Being the place of different demonstrations related to Italy. His sculptures reflect the symbols of Italianity and the historical moments that country lived through.
The greatest recognition to the Italian community of Mendoza, is without a doubt “La Piazza” Italy. Open space that is part of the ambitious urban renewal plan designed and planned by the engineer Julio Balloffet in 1863, after the devastating earthquake of 1861.
In September 2021, they were celebrated all over the world, through different demonstrations, 700 years from the passage to immortality Dante Alighieri. Which is considered the “father” of the Italian language. The FondItalia Foundation, together with the Italian Consulate in Mendoza and the Municipality of the City of Mendoza, worked on the new project. “The Divine Comedy” embodied in a challenging sculpture due to the complexity of all the characters that make it up and its great meaning between life and death. The sculptor Orlando Leytes was commissioned to carry out the work, which will surely be a landmark in Plaza Italia, Mendoza and Argentina. There are very few sculptures in the world that pay homage to “The Divine Comedy”, due to the complexity of its contents.