Frisone and the Nights in Fullen: A great Art Exhibition in Trani

𝐆𝐢𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝𝐢̀ 24 𝟐𝟒 𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐫𝐞 2024 𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞 18.30, 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨 𝐢𝐥 𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐨 𝐌𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐢 (𝐏𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐳𝐳𝐨 𝐋𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐨, 𝐏.𝐳𝐳𝐚 𝐃𝐮𝐨𝐦𝐨 8/9) the Art Exhibition "𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐞 and the Nights in 𝐅𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧. The figurative work 𝐅𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐜𝐢o 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐨 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐧e during the internment in the Third Reich Concentration Cams" organized and set up by 𝐅𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐒.𝐄.𝐂.𝐀. of Trani and from the 𝐅𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐈𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐢 𝐋𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚 𝐌𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐚 𝐄𝐓𝐒 of Barletta. The exhibition, curated by 𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐨 𝐔𝐫𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐨, 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐥𝐚 𝐃𝐢 𝐂𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐨 and 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐨 𝐋𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐨, can be visited until January 31, 2025 and will remain open from Tuesday to Sunday from 9.30 am to 1.00 pm and from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm (free admission; info: 0883582470; info@fondazioneilmc.it info@fondazioneseca.it ). The exhibition has the free patronage of the Puglia Region and the Province of Barletta-Andria-Trani. 𝐂𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐠 of the exhibition published by 𝐈𝐋𝐌𝐂 𝐄𝐝𝐢𝐳𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐢.

The exhibition is a tribute to one of the most fascinating artistic personalities of the twentieth century: the designer, painter, and sculptor Ferruccio Francesco Frisone, whose biographical and artistic story was intertwined with the drama of the Second World War and the internment experienced by 600,000 Italian soldiers in the Reich following the armistice of September 8, 1943.

The exhibition will feature 113 drawings made by Frisone on various media (from notebook paper to cardboard) using different drawing techniques throughout the entire period spent in captivity, from his imprisonment in Albania to the four concentration camps in which he was interned, such as Semlin, Versen and Fullen.

This is the complete collection of drawings that Giovanni Frisone, the artist's son, donated, along with the precious diary written by his father while a prisoner, to the Institute of Musical Literature of the Concentration Camps (ETS), based in Barletta. This foundation is dedicated to the rediscovery, preservation, and dissemination of music written in concentration and civilian and military prison camps from 1933 (the opening of KL Dachau) to 1953 (the death of Joseph Stalin). The Ferruccio Francesco Frisone Collection is a priceless artistic heritage and has now officially become part of the art collections of the ILMC Foundation and the cultural heritage of the Puglia Region.

The event offers a glimpse into one of the darkest chapters of World War II, which saw Italian soldiers who opposed Nazism as protagonists and victims. At the same time, it aims to highlight how art served as a tool of resistance against the physical and moral annihilation inflicted by totalitarian regimes through internment and deportation.

The exhibition "Frisone and the Nights in Fullen"will be illustrated and presented at a press conference that will take place on October 21 at 10.30 in Puglia at the Arena of the Department of Tourism, Economy of Culture, Territorial Valorization of the Puglia Region (Pavilion 107 of the Fair of Levante), with the participation of the Governor of the Puglia Region 𝐌𝐢𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐞 𝐄𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐨, the Councilor for Culture, Protection and Development of Cultural Enterprises 𝐕𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐚 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐨𝐥𝐚 and the Director of the Department of Culture and Tourism of the Puglia Region 𝐀𝐥𝐝𝐨 𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐧𝐨; The press conference will also be attended by 𝐆𝐢𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐢 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐞 and 𝐬𝐮𝐚 𝐦𝐨𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐡 𝐒𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐡, residents of the USA, who will come to Puglia especially for the Exhibition. During the press conference, a short film made by film producer 𝐃𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚 𝐀𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐢 on the figure and art of Ferruccio Francesco Frisone will be previewed.

Throughout its duration, the exhibition will include seminars on the phenomenology of Italian military internment (the first event is scheduled for November 15th in Trani with writer Mario Avagliano), musical events, and insights into the internment following September 8th, 1943. To crown the event, on the opening day, Poste Italiane will use its own mobile station at the Trani Museum Complex to issue a postcard and postmark dedicated to Ferruccio Francesco Frisone.

"The project for this exhibition ," states 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐨 𝐋𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐨, president of the ILMC Foundation, " represents for the ILMC Foundation the concrete expression of the progressive broadening of its research horizons from music to other forms of artistic creativity that found expression in those tragic places: the concentration camps. We cannot know how vast the work of recovering these testimonies will be, but we must pursue it for ourselves and for future generations, for a more beautiful history of humanity; because, as the French philosopher Gabriel Marcel wrote, hope is the memory of the future."

"We welcomed with great pleasure ," declared Cav. 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐏𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐨, Secretary General of the SECA Foundation, " the ILMC Foundation's proposal to share the organization, at Palazzo Lodispoto, of an exhibition dedicated to the artist Ferruccio Francesco Frisone. This event will represent a unique opportunity for everyone to admire the works of the painter and illustrator, which will recount one of the most dramatic pages of the last war period through an anthology of drawings that hark back to one of the most painful moments in history and which, when analyzed, arouse great emotion. Today more than ever, through these works, we must question ourselves by delving into our consciences on those moments that, just as they captured the eyes and carved the heart of Ferruccio Francesco Frisone, must reach our hearts and remain in our minds. For this event of great historical importance, the choice The choice of location could only fall on Palazzo Lodispoto, home of the SECA Foundation and a hub of art and culture par excellence in our area.”

𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐚 𝐛𝐢𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐚 𝐬𝐮𝐅𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐜𝐢𝐨 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐨 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐞

Born in Malnate (Varese) on February 19, 1909, he trained as a draftsman and painter during the interwar years, attending the Brera Academy and Futurist circles in Milan. From the early 1930s, he worked for the Vitagliano publishing house as a layout artist, draftsman, and illustrator. Called up for military service in 1942 and assigned to a garrison unit stationed in Albania, he was forced to undergo numerous hospitalizations due to back problems. Captured by German troops at Military Hospital 426 in Tirana after the armistice of September 8, 1943, he was interned in Semlin, Versen, and Fullen. After his imprisonment and liberation, he resumed his work at Vitagliano. After its closure in 1964, he was able to devote himself more continuously to painting. On April 24, 1972, his first solo exhibition of his prison drawings was held in the prestigious Palazzo dell'Arengario in Milan's Piazza del Duomo. Sponsored by the Department of Cultural Initiatives and Tourism of the City of Milan, it was titled "From Albania to Lager VI/C." In December of the same year, he received the Ambrogino d'Oro (the highest honor awarded by the City of Milan to its citizens) for his work as a painter and illustrator. He died in Milan on December 26, 1973. After his death, his diary was found by his son Giovanni. This diary, along with his drawings, was exhibited for the first time in Germany at the Documentation and Information Center (DIZ) Emslandlager in Papenburg. Since November 1, 2012, several drawings from the concentration camp, excerpts from his diary, a short biography, and a photograph have been displayed in display cases at the Esterwegen Memorial, testifying to the experience of Italian military internees during World War II. In 2015, the full version of his diary, titled Binario Morto, was published, with historical annotations by the Piedmont Institute for the History of the Resistance and Contemporary Society.

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