“hortus conclusus” brings the beauty of the world to bergamo

the initiative that sees the precious carpets of the fondazione tassara of brescia as protagonists is presented at palazzo agliardi

the splendid palazzo agliardi was the charming setting for the presentation of the exhibition “hortus conclusus – the garden in the oriental carpets of the fondazione tassara”, scheduled as part of the “landscape festival – the masters of landscape”. the event, promoted by the fondazione tassara of brescia and by the historic dwellings of bergamo coming about from an idea by giovanni valagussa in collaboration with the galleria moshe tabibnia of milan, has the aim of familiarizing the public with a selection of the most important collection of carpets in the world from the 15^th to the 19^th century. the carpets selected, with floral and animal motifs that recall luxuriant gardens, will be on display in three of the 13 private historical dwellings of bergamo that will open their doors to visitors during the “landscape festival” (on the afternoons of 15 and 22 september): palazzo agliardi, palazzo moroni and palazzo terzi.

“with our historic dwellings we become ambassadors of the beauty of bergamo’s artistic heritage, handing down the skills of our local craftsmen across the centuries” –  explained maria carolina agliardi, historic dwellings coordinator for bergamo  -. “as homeowners we have the task of keeping our dwellings alive, of welcoming visitors with the warmth of those who open the doors of their residences, also revealing their spirit. we have enthusiastically supported the masters of landscape event, which offers us a further possibility to showcase our halls, this year embellished by the carpets of the fondazione tassara”.

“our foundation has always had the aim of promoting the territory with initiatives to the benefit of its culture, its traditions, as well as that of the world of young people and schools. what is significant in particular is our contribution towards the relaunch of the teatro grande di brescia” – as president of fondazione tassara, flavio pasotti, has declared – “romain zaleski has donated to our foundation the most complete private collection of carpets in the world. their history, which you will be able to admire in hortus conclusus, began 600 years ago: it has left the orient and reached us across the centuries. the dream we are pursuing is to find a home for these carpets, that is, to realize a museum to produce culture, with the aim of familiarizing an ever greater number of people with the history, tradition and culture of those who have brought these works of art to us. we have already had numerous international contacts, but we would like this home to be in italy, in particular in brescia”.

hortus conclusus is part of the more extensive event, the masters of landscape, organized by arketipos, as president maurizio vegini explains: “our festival is a major hub; it provides an opportunity for encounters with players and ideas that promote beauty and good living. the hortus conclusus initiative falls fully within this general concept. the beauty and history of these carpets is unique in the world and fits perfectly in our event”.

these event are directed by giovanni valagussa, curator and inventor of the initiative: “we have demonstrated that we know how to form a team and work together despite coming from different spheres. various players have come together to realize hortus conclusus: the masters of landscape, the historic dwellings and the fondazione tassara. the carpets, with their exotic animals, birds and plants, are the idealized representation of a garden and are harmoniously integrated into the historic dwellings of bergamo. the ones we will place on display are only a small yet high-quality selection of the unique stock of 1325 carpets that the foundation possesses: an endless expanse of beauty”.