In 2024 the Fondazione Pastificio Cerere celebrates the 20th anniversary of its institution with the opening of a new exhibition space – designed by the STARTT architecture studio – and two exhibitions, curated by artistic director Marcello Smarrelli: one of these is the group show Angels. Cinquant’anni di storie del Pastificio Cerere.
The Foundation is located in the former Pastificio Cerere, the oldest of the factories in the San Lorenzo district, which was founded in 1905 and became famous thanks to the work of the artists of the ‘Gruppo di San Lorenzo’ – Bruno Ceccobelli, Gianni Dessì, Giuseppe Gallo, Nunzio, Pizzi Cannella, Marco Tirelli – who first recognised the potential of this disused location and decided to move their studios there. It was the 1970s, and from then on, industrial spaces were gradually converted into ateliers, becoming a point of reference in Rome’s cultural scene and a hotbed of interdisciplinary creativity strongly receptive to novelties and avant-garde art.
Angels. Fifty years of stories from the Pastificio Cerere brings together works of art, photos, videos and archive documents to establish a narrative capable of conveying the vitality of the former pasta factory, characterised by sudden changes and long stays of famous or more obscure personalities, many of them linked to the artists of the Scuola di San Lorenzo, critics and curators who frequented the Palace from the 1970s onwards, gallerists , supporters and patrons, and the many others who frequented or inhabited the ateliers.
Another important addition will be the opening of a space with a museum vocation housing the permanent collection, which is bound to be enriched over time with site-specific works created in dialogue with the industrial archaeology artefacts of the disused factory.
The celebrations dedicated to the important milestone of twenty years of activity will continue with the publication of the second volume of the Albo d’oro, which expands on the account of the first ten years of activity covered in the first volume published in 2019.
With these initiatives for its 20th anniversary, Fondazione Pastificio Cerere confirms its determination to pursue its role as an increasingly international institution dedicated to contemporary artistic production, a cultural hub of encounter and exchange dedicated above all to young artists.
