The Life of Things: Contemporary Art and Public Space in Lecce

The former Agip service station by Mario Bacciocchi in Lecce, a striking futuristic architectural structure long neglected despite its central location near the historic center, has finally been opened to the public (currently only externally). Maurizio Buttazzo installed large-scale photographic prints on the facade, created during workshops and residencies linked to Puglia Circuito del contemporaneo, a project conceived and directed by Giusy Caroppo, co-financed by the tourism and cultural industry department of the Puglia Region, in partnership with the Municipality of Lecce and curated by Marco Petroni. The Lecce stage of the Circuito, titled The Life of Things, focused on linguistic disorientation between interventions, spaces, and workshop activities, and on a widespread idea of public art. Besides Buttazzo, who has long worked on regeneration of materials and spaces, the project featured Alterazioni Video and Antonio Ottomanelli. Alterazioni Video used typical local luminarie (festive lights) to create an installation with sound interventions, while Antonio Ottomanelli installed a site-specific work in a natural area near the city, dedicated to the ongoing regeneration of those geographies. However, Ottomanelli's work was destroyed by unknown persons on September 24, 2018.