San Pietro in Casale (BO), 16 December. (askanews) – Un trunk returned from the sea becomes the serpent of Eden. Chipped roof tiles transform into a two thousand year old village. The carriages are made from the wood of old furniture. The scraps of discarded fabrics are used for Bedouin tents in the desert. Hundreds of small objects, characters and constructions are handmade by an eighty-year-old former carpenter. For fifteen years, Gilberto Veronesi with recycled materials creates a nativity scene that is as original as it is sustainable in the garden of his home a San Pietro in Casalein the Bolognese area.
«Christmas comes almost everywhere – explains Veronesi -. I wanted to make an Arab village, a small village with cowboys and a saloon. Then I also reserved a small piece of space for the Indians who no longer exist. It’s all recycled stuff here. I have a friend who has a house with everything in itit looks like a landfill: here every time I pick up something I imagine how I can use it.”
Small creations finished down to the smallest detail and colored with patience and mastery by this unexpected artist, who works all year round to bring something new to life every Christmas. «There was one year when the parish priest came to eat at a neighbor’s place, then they came to see the nativity scene – recalls the artist -. He said: “nice, but something is missing”. The statuette of the Wonder. That statuette remained with me for a while… I looked for it in town and couldn’t find it, then I went to Ferrara and I found it. This Wonder it has remained in my heart and every time I make a nativity scene I say: “here, this is the statuette that drove me crazy”.
The nativity scene is enriched by an artistic installation, different every year, on which a message is engraved brotherhood which speaks to the many people who come to admire it. «The nativity scene is fine for everyone. We live in a world that isn’t exactly nice and rightly so everyone can interpret it as they wish – concludes Gilberto Veronesi -. There are always people who come from outside too; they know it’s a tradition in the town, everyone comes for a stroll. Especially the children, when they leave nursery school, stop with their mothers and have a great party.”
Interview by Paolo Tomassone
Editing by Carlo Molinari
Images askanews
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