emilio ferro pierces chapel of san rocco with suspended beam of light in italy

‘miracle’ illuminates the way to the sanctuary of vicoforte

Miracle, a site-specific installation conceived for the Chapel of San Rocco in Italy, traverses the ancient architecture like a luminous arrow, imagining new transcendental trajectories. Realized by Emilio Ferro for the Landandart program, the artwork is a beacon of suspended light that leads the way to the Sanctuary of Vicoforte. The pointed metal structure spans 18 meters long, with a second iteration outside, supported by a large tree: a generating force that germinates from the ground and the gentle guidance of the branches.

Completing the installation is a audial intervention created by sampling fragmented sounds from the magnetic fields present in the Chapel and the Sanctuary, and the sounds emanating from the surrounding landscape. Together, they compose the psychoacoustic soundtrack that embraces his multisensorial work. Miracle is commissioned by the VIA Cultural Association, and will be open to visitors from June 8th, 2024.

all images by Roberto Conte

emilio ferro intertwines light and sound

Emilio Ferro, who has always been attracted to themes that interweave the profound implications between human beings and nature, man-made and natural landscapes, light and shadow, and sound and silence, here creates a work that projects the materiality of nature toward mystical transcendence. The irregularities of natural lines mingle with sharp geometric forms, creating a dynamic balance between opposing forces, while the warmth and evocative power of light intertwine with the metallic element, whose strength he harnesses to the point of sublimation.

For Miracle, the artist draws upon the pictorial field created by Mattia Bortoloni in the Sanctuary of Vicoforte: the immense fresco painted under the largest elliptical dome in the world, where the technique of scenographic artifices increases the observer’s desire for transcendence already inspired by the tromp-l’oeil scattered over an area of more than six thousand square meters. ‘An impetus to spiritual asceticism that in Ferro’s work is transformed into light, matter as elusive as ever, which from the enclosed space of the Chapel of San Rocco finds a way out into the sky,’ notes Ferro.

Emilio Ferro presents Miracle

the installation is rooted in the sublime

Chapels such as that of San Rocco, scattered throughout the Monregalese territory, constituted in ancient times a sort of map that pilgrims heading to the Sanctuary of Vicoforte used as reference points in their itinerary. Around the 17th century, thousands of faithful faced long and difficult journeys to reach this place of worship, which became famous for its numerous miracles and whose importance was comparable to the modern sanctuaries of Lourdes and Medjugorje.

The spiritual quest, accompanied by the hope of witnessing a miracle, gave this journey a deep and symbolic significance. Similarly, today, the contemporary pilgrim undertakes the journey into nature and art in search of extra-ordinary sensations, of grounding, but also of discovery and elevation. A profoundly transformative experience.

When, in 2022, at the invitation of the patron, Emilio Ferro visited the Chapel of San Rocco, a wild cherry tree, completely burned, dominated the atmosphere with its lifeless shadow. However, although the tree seemed destined to remain bare and flayed, during the preparations for the installation in 2024, a surprising change occurred: shy buds sprouted on the branches and, just before the work was completed, the tree exploded in a riot of blossoms. This event, in perfect harmony with the artist’s creative process, gave birth to Miracle, a testimony to rebirth and transformation.

conceived for the Chapel of San Rocco

half of the installation is supported by a back tree

the artist interweaves the profound implications between human beings and nature

the pointed metal structure spans 18 meters long

Ferro draws upon the pictorial field created by Mattia Bortoloni in the Sanctuary of Vicoforte

a psychoacoustic soundtrack embraces this multisensorial work

project info:

name: Miracle
designer: Emilio Ferro

commissioner: VIA Cultural Association (founded by Giulia Carbone, Geremia Siboni and Sergio Basso)

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: ravail khan | designboom