A walk around Alfredo Oriani’s hometown, Faenza, discovering the sites that bear his memory.
Writer and poet (Faenza 1852 – Casola Valsenio 1909), he was the author of novels, political and social critics works, artistic and historical writings.
Alfredo Oriani, the third son of Luigi, a wealthy lawyer, and Clementina Bertoni, was born on August 22nd 1852, in via XX Settembre, a few steps away from the Cathedral and Piazza della Libertà.
Oriani lived here for 10 years, when he left his hometown to attend the prestigious San Luigi boarding School in Bologna.
The house is easy to recognize because of a stone remembering Alfredo with the words of the historian Piero Zama (1886-1984). Thanks to his in-depth knowledge of Fascism and Oriani’s character, he wrote: “when alive he suffered isolation and loneliness, when dead he was loudly and deeply offended”, making a reference to Mussolini’s exploitation of Oriani’s writings, even elevating him to a pioneer of Fascism.
Between the 18th and 19th centuries, there were many cafès in Faenza where intellectuals and patriots got together.
Among these, Orfeo cafè, which moved from Laderchi Palace to a new location in Portico degli Orefici at the corner between piazza della Libertà and Corso Mazzini, with an eye-catching ceramic sign designed by Achille Calzi.
The cafè was often visited by Oriani, coming from Casola Valsenio with his buggy or riding his bike. In the fresh rooms of Orfeo cafè, on a Sunday in July 1897 Oriani awaited in vain his friend Aldo Orlandi before leaving for his cycling adventure across Romagna and Tuscany, described in his book “La Bicicletta”. This deed made him the first “cycling tourist in history”: a journey of a month from Faenza to Siena and Pisa, across gravel roads and taverns, without a planned destination but guided by the pleasure of travelling. Oriani’s bike is exhibited in his House Museum in Via Cardello, 15 in Casola Valsenio.
A bronze altorilievo representing Oriani’s face, by Domenico Rambelli (Faenza, 1886 - Roma 1972) may be found inside the Council Hall of Palazzo Manfredi City Hall.
The artist is considered one of the most significant Italian sculptors of the Novecento. The bronze portrait stands on a marble plaque surrounded by bronze “flames of passion”. One rare gypsum copy of the piece is on display at Oriani’s House Museum Il Cardello.
When leaving the city hall, walk through the Salone delle bandiere (flag room), where the five banners representing the Rioni of Faenza are exhibited: every year, the 5 neighborhoods relive the Medieval challenge of the Palio del Niballo.
Useful info
Palazzo Manfredi is the townhall headquarters and may be visited during working hours.
The origins of Faenza Library, the so called Manfrediana, date back to the end of the 18th century. Opened to the public in 1818, a couple of years later it was moved to today’s address, Via Manfredi 14, in a former monastery.
The library was enriched with manuscripts, books and documents thanks to the work of many directors, among them Piero Zama. The Ancient section is remarkable, enclosing beautifully decorated rooms, ancient codes, medieval manuscripts and the richest and oldest musical collection (14th and 15th century).
The reading room displays a bronze bust of Alfredo Oriani, by artist Pietro Fabbri, donated to the Manfrediana Library in 1934.
To know
Have a look at a digital version of a section dedicated to the Oriani portrait by Rambelli.
Located on the South side of Piazza del Popolo, Palazzo delle Poste was designed and realized by architect Cesare Bazzani, on order of Mussolini.
The palace features a tower with a roof terrace, used by the Fascist regime to celebrate Oriani with a lunette in Istrian stone by Giuseppe Casalini and a plaque with some verses from “La rivolta ideale” (1908).
It was in this harsh and contradictory piece, Oriani’s spiritual testament, that Fascism read a prophecy of the regime.
Built in 1796, the Municipal Art Gallery is the most ancient museum in Romagna and exhibits more than 200 art pieces.
It preserves a fragment of the great altarpiece by Guido Reni, with the Virgin enthroned and Saint Francis and Catherine, realised in 1613 for the Franciscan monastery and destroyed during the 1944 bombings.
A rare copy of this piece is visible at Cardello, located over the door leading to the noble floor.
The most significant sculpture dedicated to Alfredo Oriani by Rambelli was made with gypsum but never transformed into bronze by the artist.
In this sculpture, which took over 10 years to finish, it is possible to identify the robust and synthetized sculptural solutions typical of the artist’s best period. The first drawings date back to the ‘20s, modified many times until the end of the ‘60s.
A creative path, documented by drawings and photographs talking about the evolution of the style through the progress in the art piece: starting from Oriani represented with a long beard transforming then into a very emotive figure, without any details.
Only after his passing, in 1990, the piece was molded in two copies: one of them was placed in Largo Toki by the Faenza Municipality in the same year.
To know
The Oriani monument is part of the MAP - Open air Museum of Contemporary Art in Faenza.
Not far away, the bronze monument by Angelo Biancini represents Oriani holding the handlebars and a wheel of his beloved bicycle. The sculpture was made in 1958 and inaugurated on October 11th 1959 in Casola Valsenio, in the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Oriani’s passing.
The monument we see today is actually a copy that Biancini made for his personal collection, then donated to the Faenza Municipality. It was placed in Via Manzoni in January 1988, a few weeks after the artist’s passing.
Tip
A visit Casa Museo Oriani House museum in Casola Valsenio
