Il Pesce d’Oro is a permanent collective research project that operates through the interdisciplinary languages of the contemporary scene, art and craftsmanship. The group, led by Samanta Cinquini (Mia) and Micaela Leonardi, is committed to stimulating creativity and artistic expression as tools for transformation and the search for meaning in life, in relationships, in everyday life, in the small that is infinitely large.
Il Pesce d’Oro, “Anima e affioramenti”, 2023, performance at Spazio Cento4, Bergamo
Alberto Ceresoli: Il Pesce d’Oro nasce nel 2016: una lettera rivolta ai giovani e distribuita attraverso i social chiamava tredici donne a prepararsi per la doratura. Non posso che iniziare da questo scambio domandandovi: che cos’è la doratura?
Samanta Cinquini (Mia) and Micaela Leonardi: Gilding, for us, is a practice, and it is part of a story: the origin of Il Pesce d’Oro. Initially conceived as a performance, our training sessions were nothing more than a psycho-physical preparation for that event. Over time, during these sessions, new worlds emerged, and the practices multiplied. Gilding remained the foundational myth of the group, so much so that the poet and artist Giulia Cosio turned it into a tale. Our tale. During the practice of Gilding, we take what is deemed useless and, through ritual, transform it into a luxury object of, a ‘sacred’ object. The discarded (the fishbone) thus becomes an object of ‘worship,’ a relic: a fishbone covered in 24k gold leaf, following the Byzantine tradition, acquiring a symbolic and, in part, economic value. The practice of gilding is inherently plural, rooted in the process of the ritual. It is a collective practice. In this way, gilding becomes the place of presence that we explore. Indeed, gilding has taken on different meanings as it has been practiced. It requires preparation, and preparing oneself means creating a distance from the ordinary world, where we dangerously grow accustomed to an erosion of meaning.
Il Pesce d’Oro, “Composizione”, 2024, performance at Spazio Colibrì, Bergamo
Eight years have passed since the birth of the collective. What did Il Pesce d’Oro mean for you in 2016 and what does it represent today?
The journey with Il Pesce d’Oro began with the idea of creating a performance, a concrete image, but it turned into an ongoing search, an open and evolving process. In 2016, for many, Il Pesce d’Oro was an answer to the need to find a group that asked itself: «We are human, but what do we do with this humanity?». That apparent absurdity, like spending two hours taking off and putting back on a shirt, was actually a profound exploration of the human being, of his limits, his virtues and his vulnerabilities. Creative work is always aimed at others, at the group, and this creates an essential passage: a bridge that pushes us beyond simple personal expression, allowing us to immerse ourselves in a process of shared creation with our traveling companions, whoever they may be. It is a game that requires courage, recklessness and an act of faith, both in the guide and in the process. Today Il Pesce d’Oro is an (open) community that, through artistic and performative practice, seeks to build an aesthetic education. For many of us, the days of Il Pesce d’Oro are appointments marked on the calendar, around which the rest of our lives revolve. It is also possible to approach the group and be part of it by following more sporadic rhythms. In fact, if Il Pesce d’Oro has managed to celebrate eight years (and will continue to grow), it is due as much to those who have chosen it as a life mission, as to those who have gone through it as a stage of their journey. It is, always, an act of faith and freedom.
Il Pesce d’Oro, “Il fortino e la doratura”, 2024, Festival humananatura, Berbenno (BG)
Can you tell me about your training sessions? I know, you’ve been inviting me to join for a while now. It will happen, if it’s still possible, perhaps as an observer…
Each session is a shared space-time in which the group moves according to rules that continually arise and adapt, like a framework of exercises prepared by the artistic direction and the staging team. These exercises are not an end in themselves but provide opportunities for improvisation, allowing images, narratives, and dramaturgies to emerge spontaneously. Sessions last between four and ten hours, depending on the type of work and the people involved. They can focus on physical, vocal, rhythmic, or dramaturgical exploration, always with the freedom to overturn the structure to follow according the emerging intuitions. Even those observing play an active role, as their perspective contributes to creating a shared space, an emotional place that everyone inhabits. No one knows exactly where the work will lead, but what is built becomes material for future explorations, in a continuous cycle of collective creation. During training, everyone is indispensable. Anyone can find their place if they wish to. The possibilities for exploration are endless, provided the context, time and space, and the Guide allows for it. Those who do not participate actively do so indirectly, reflecting on aspects such as lighting and its effects, music (often played live), costumes, masks, and other details. Each training session is unique: sometimes it is more convivial. On one occasion, for example, we baked bread together, cooking it on an improvised stove and sharing it as a group. Other times, it takes on a more ‘sacred’ tone, and the play becomes more serious. There’s no need to declare this explicitly, it is naturally felt. We often address themes that resonate personally; the Guide selects these topics with the aim of engaging one or more participants in particular. When training sessions take place during a residency, members of the hosting community often join in the play, influencing and guiding it. This happened, for instance, in Squillace, where we unexpectedly found ourselves working around the figure of the Madonna del Carmine. The sessions serve to explore, structure, and sometimes dismantle shared ‘stanzas’, understood both as physical and emotional spaces.
Il Pesce d’Oro, “Il pane, il mare, le signore di Mazara”, 2022, Mazara del Vallo (TP)
Over the years, your training sessions have found a home in many spaces near Bergamo: Upper Lab, Polaresco, Teatro di Loreto, Teatro Erbamil, Magus, and the former Sant’Agata prison. Where are you now? Are you looking for a permanent residence, or are you nomadic by choice?
We currently work primarily in Spazio Colibrì at the Centro Psicologia e Cambiamento in Bergamo, where we store our materials. We are also working in the Church of Sant’Antonio in Fiobbio, owned by the Sugliani family and purchased by the master engraver Caio Claudio Sugliani. Additionally, we are always open to hospitality and collaboration proposals. Nomadism represents an opportunity for us to open up and discover, a way to test ourselves and adapt to often complex conditions, forcing us to rebuild. We have thus made wandering a virtue, enabling us to explore ever-changing conditions of comfort and discomfort. Space is an essential component of our sessions: there is no such thing as a right or wrong space. Il Pesce d’Oro could hold a four-hour session around a phone booth or a manhole, and that would be fine. However, there is a shared dream: to have a HOME, a concept that each of us imagines differently. To build and preserve, a home is necessary. This dream envisions an ideal work setting but cannot exclude the possibility of traveling and engaging with diverse realities. It must not be a closure but rather a core suited to the needs of everyone, creating a safe place that meets the requirements of each individual. Part of our ideals is tied to nomadism, while an unwavering commitment to care drives us to seek a home. These are the two poles of a tension in which we find ourselves living.
Il Pesce d’Oro, “La notte dei continenti. Chi resta”, 2023, performance at Spazio Cento4, Bergamo
As a collective, you have always been committed to offering workshop experiences, sometimes born from collaborations with other organizations and associations (I’m thinking of your work with Orlando Festival). I would love to discuss many of your projects, such as “The Workshop of Poetic Anatomy” or “COR-PUS”, but within the space of this brief interview, I believe it’s important to ask you to tell me about the “Workshop for the Father”.
It is perhaps the most intimate workshop we carry out, and the one about which ‘we feel least capable of speaking’. The method remains naturally the same: it is our research. We try to remain within the complexity of the figure of the father, constantly striving to keep true both all the experiences and the ‘theories’ about the father, exploring the most intrinsic boundaries of our experiences. The ‘Workshop for the Father’ is a space for embodied and collective reflection on the experiences of fatherhood. It is a time for listening and expression during which we can let out tears and sweat, and put colors and marks on our experience of having been children and/or fathers through techniques from the visual arts and performance. During the workshop, we carry out the ‘Missions of the Father’. Each of us has reflected on an action that connects us to the ‘Father’ and the ‘Paternal’. Once the action is identified, we commit to ‘rewriting’ it so that it becomes a Mission of the present to share with our companions on this journey. It is a way to say goodbye, honor, rewrite, and bear witness, while maintaining the lightness and seriousness of an ‘outing,’ a ‘tradition,’ or even a celebration. We have been to the mountains, we have gone through a funeral rite, and we will build a gigantic papier-mâché pig that will serve as a piñata! (etc.) Additionally, we asked the participants (all hearing) to write a small script so that the LIS interpreter and Gestalt counselor, Barbara Anzivino, could teach them to translate it into Italian Sign Language (LIS). We asked each one to write this ‘unspeakable’ and necessary ‘mystery’ in order to say goodbye, forgive, take leave, and feel. Italian Sign Language (LIS) is much more than just a communication system; each sign embodies cultural contexts, experiences, and sensory perceptions, making it unique and profoundly expressive. As a visual language, LIS not only describes the world but also shapes it through the use of the body, emphasizing the importance of the physical experience in constructing meanings and relationships. All of this brings us back to ancestral memories that, when brought into the form of a creative artistic process, allow for something deep, personal, and healing, something that each fatherhood, motherhood, and son/daughter must decide for themselves.
Il Pesce d’Oro, “Missione Laura”, 2024, performance at Rifugio Benigni, Ornica, Alpi Orobie
Photography as a tool for documentation and writing as a tool for?
Writing is a tool for liberation and inspiration. During the sessions, the Chorus and the Guide write, when possible, in a stream of consciousness, following the unpredictable. The key words that emerge transform into images, expanding the idea of what we see and hear. Automatic writing challenges preconceived ideas and makes room for what we like to call ‘prophecy.’ It also becomes a method of analysis, both of the whole and of ourselves. We often also go through what we call open dramaturgy, recording our voices as they happen. These traces remain as dramaturgical prompts within that personal and collective cycle that defines us.
Il Pesce d’Oro, sessioni di allenamento, 2024, Chiesa S. Antonio da Padova, Fiobbio (BG)
I read on your Instagram profile: «Exercise and poetic evolution of clapping music. Rhythm, coordination of rhythm, body in sync with body, space, and the belief that we can keep quiet about “beautiful ideas” remind us of the animals that we are». Are you working on something new?
Clapping music exists independently of us, but if we approach it with the seriousness of an orchestra, in a different context it can transform into a means of ‘collective presence’ and, at the same time, a symbol of rigor. We use and transform training exercises that, despite their simplicity, guide us towards the more intimate and expressive dimensions of our work. The direction we take is connected to the processes we follow, and it doesn’t include novelty as part of our lexicon. Our research path is built on layering, a process that digs deep, like core drilling, in search of meaning. Sometimes it is essential to work on the past to deepen it, expand it, or even question it. We can tell you about “I don’t know if laughter or pity prevails”, a project started last year thanks to actress and dancer Simona Zanini, marking our first directorial work. Or we could mention the curatorial project “He who sees, she who speaks”, where poetry and collage intertwine thanks to artists Luca Sugliani and Giulia Cosio. We could also talk about video art projects we will create with artist Valentina Riva, wooden toys by Manuelisa Fenn Reggibile, and the masks made by artist Beatrice Algeri. Not to mention “Poetic Anatomy and the Voice”, in collaboration with musician Mari Celeste Criniti… and much more. For us, none of this is really new; it is simply something that surfaces. As Luca ironically likes to call it: it’s our multi-headed monster. Every action and thought, in the end, comes from what already exists. By working with respect and listening to what is there, and paying attention to how it manifests, we allow everything to emerge spontaneously.
Alberto Ceresoli
Info:
SAMANTA CINQUINI (Mia)
Samanta Cinquini (Mia) is an artist and performer, researcher and independent curator, dedicated to pedagogy, scenic dramaturgy and the philosophy of education. She holds a degree in theatre anthropology and a master’s degree in history and criticism of contemporary photography. Since 2016, she has co-led the interdisciplinary art group Il Pesce d’Oro with Micaela Leonardi.
MICAELA LEONARDI
Micaela Leonardi is an artist, performer, craft bookbinder and costume designer. She trained in the ateliers of the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice. She has met and collaborated with international performance festivals and organizations. Since 2016, she has co-led the interdisciplinary art group Il Pesce d’Oro with Samanta Cinquini (Mia).
ALBERTO CERESOLI
Alberto Ceresoli is a cultural planner, independent art curator, and journalist. Over the years, he has collaborated with associations, art galleries, contemporary art publishing houses, and project spaces, as well as leading educational, training, and social inclusion paths. Since 2015, he has been the artistic director of PARCO Art Platform.
is a contemporary art magazine since 1980
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