The art and fiction between “Fox … Bear, Wolf and Buffalo”. A perfect alchemy for the village of Panicale which is filled with tourists and visitors in the same days in which the episodes of the series shot last spring in this segment of Umbria are broadcast on Sky and Nowtv. Perhaps a coincidence but, especially during the aperitif hours, Piazza Umberto I is crowded. The tables are full and populated by tourists with an Anglo-Saxon accent who, between spritz and glasses of white wine, seem like the perfect characters of “La Signora Volpe”, will it be suggestive? Possible, because the fact is that at the same time the TV series is broadcast that tells the adventurous events of an Italian-English secret service agent, who for a series of coincidences decides to move to Panicale, and the scenes of the village in these days appear quite similar. Sylvia, the protagonist played by the actress Emilia Fox, is a beautiful and intelligent woman of about 40 years, but in reality few people know that she also speaks 5 languages fluently, she has an encyclopedic knowledge of every existing weapon and is a black belt in judo . And she especially she is a secret agent of the British services. On the occasion of the wedding of her niece Alice, daughter of her sister Isabel, who married a doctor from Panicale, Sylvia takes a trip to Italy, which is also introspective. On the day of the wedding, Alice’s fiancé, a charming university researcher, disappears. But leaving behind him a bulky and mysterious corpse in the garden. Filming in Panicale concentrated in the historic center. Enriching this delightful picture come huge figures… with all their energy and vitality in Panicale there are “Orso”, “Lupi” and “Bufale”, aluminum sculptures signed by Davide Rivalta. This is thanks to the newly created “L’Arca di Pan” center for the arts, housed in the spaces of the former oil mill in Viale Regina Margherita, which dedicated a specific event to the provocative Bolognese sculptor. Every creature gorilla, cheetah, bear or wolf, has unique characteristics and qualities that connote it with a recognizable and precise animality.
“The animals of Rivalta – for the criticism – are often provocations, because by abandoning the symbolic function they have had over the centuries, they rediscover their deepest essence”. Just like the three works that arrived in Umbria at the invitation of the Ark of Pan. A bear and two wolves (in the square to “guard” the fountain) and three buffaloes (next to the main square that seem to be heading towards the lake) or placed among the olive trees of the Panicale countryside a few steps from the historic center, capable of live their own life as if they were really three specimens left free to move in nature. Installations that deserve a visit to the village and why not, an aperitif in the square in full spirit of “Signora Volpe”.
Sara Minciaroni
