FROM SERAFINI TO LUIGI
The Egg, the Skeleton, and the Rainbow
March 29, 2025 – July 13, 2025
Curated by the Franco Maria Ricci Foundation and Luigi Serafini
The new spring exhibition at the Labirinto della Masone is an extraordinary journey into the visionary universe of Luigi Serafini, hosted in the museum of the publisher who first released his enigmatic Codex Seraphinianus in 1981.
This return to the origins does more than celebrate the masterpiece that captivated figures like Italo Calvino, Federico Fellini, and Tim Burton; it ventures into uncharted territory, unveiling a previously untold narrative of its genesis and illuminating its profound impact on the artist’s entire oeuvre.
The exhibition charts a path from the celebrated Serafini, known worldwide for the Codex, to the more intimate Luigi, delving into the roots of his creative imagination. Following images and memories that gave life to a surreal and brilliant universe, the display unfolds as an immersive experience that defies linear interpretation, playing with references, quotations, and mental labyrinths characteristic of Serafini’s intricate mind.
In the inaugural issue of FMR magazine, Italo Calvino described that Other Universe of the Codex Seraphinianus as follows: “I’d say the images that most unleash Serafini’s visionary raptus are three: the skeleton, the egg, the rainbow.“
The exhibition is structured around this fundamental tripartition, reflecting both the artist’s preferred iconography and the phases of his creative journey: the pre-Codex era, the Codex era, and the post-Codex era.
To convey this return to the origins, a significant section of the exhibition focuses on Serafini’s “prehistory,” the period preceding the creation of the Codex.
The very first work ever created by the artist will be displayed, depicting his family home in Pedaso, a place Serafini refers to as his aboriginal landscape.
This connection deeply shaped his poetic imagination, as the exhibition reveals through entirely unpublished works and artifacts, unknown even to the artist’s most dedicated admirers.
This ab-original phase also encompasses his studies in architecture and a pivotal journey to America, both of which are documented within the exhibition.
Following this account of the origins-before-the-origins, the spotlight turns to the Codex Seraphinianus itself, offering an immersive exploration of its illustrated plates, juxtaposed with sculptures that bring its visions into three-dimensional form.
The exhibition concludes with select examples of Serafini’s post-Codex work: sculptures, paintings, photographs, and even a glimpse into the artist’s Roman residence, the Domus Seraphiniana. This unique home has recently drawn public attention due to its precarious preservation status.
Naturally, as befitting a place like the Labyrinth and an intellect as labyrinthine as Serafini’s, this tripartition will not be presented in a mechanically chronological fashion. A web of ironic and self-ironic allusions, dazzling epiphanies and intentional lapses, winks and nods, jumps, excavations, and illusions will guide visitors through the eccentric universe of Luigi Serafini.
Until March 30, 2025: Open daily (except Tuesdays) from 9:30 AM to 6:00 PM, with last entry at 4:30 PM.
From March 31, 2025: Open daily (except Tuesdays) from 10:30 AM to 7:00 PM, with last entry at 5:30 PM.
Admission to the exhibition is included with the entrance ticket to the Labirinto della Masone, which also grants access to the bamboo labyrinth and the Franco Maria Ricci permanent collection.
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