South Tyrol
September 17, 2008 · Print This Article
Conceptual Art and Alpenglow.
Once upon a time King Laurin ruled over dwarfs that lived in the Dolomites. His pride and joy was his magnificent rose garden located on the region’s second highest mountain. Unfortunately, he wasn’t as lucky with women as he was with flowers. So he wasn’t invited when the King of Adige was giving his daughter away to the nobility for marriage. In a contest for Similde that lasted for days, two warriors excelled but before either of them could win the contest, Laurin had already long since strapped on his magic belt and cloak of invisibility, stolen Similde and kidnapped her to the mountain. With the help of the enormous Prince Dietrich of Bern, the horned warriors embarked on the battle, invading the rose garden, finally overpowering Laurin and taking him prisoner despite his disguise. That the warriors were able to find him is something the cowardly dwarf faulted the roses for. He cursed the rose garden: No one should see it anymore, neither during the day or night!
One of the things this heroic epic explains is the reddish-purple Alpenglow, because when Laurin cast his spell he forgot to mention dawn and dusk which is why the garden can only be seen blooming at this time. During later conflicts, the metaphors surrounding the legend only continued to grow. And many such conflicts ensued. For example, in 1919, when the formerly Austrian South Alpine province that had spoken German for centuries was annexed by Italy—so to speak, as a thank you for having entered into the Entente as an ally during World War I. Ever since, one issue has been particular to South Tyrol : Italian versus Tyrolian. Laurin against Dietrich or vice versa—who really knows with disputes like this. Two years later, a foretaste of Mussolini’s fascism came in the form of the events of the “Bozen Blood Sunday” when Italian Blackshirts attacked a Tyrolian procession in traditional costumes. People were injured and there was one death. Forced Italianization ensued by establishing heavy industry in South Tyrol— to date, something non-existent in the agricultural and livestock region—as well as through the massive influx of Italian laborers and officials, bans against speaking German and reeducation measures. This is what turned Bozen into an Italian city with 100,000 residents. The cultural division or, as one fortunately sees it today, the cultural diversity is not only apparent in the bilingual street and place-name signs, but also in the municipal area of Bozen itself. With its baroque architecture, the old city center has an Alpine feeling. On the other side of the Talvera River, Italo-chauvinist self-expression starts with the Victory Monument and modern areas—so to speak, with the interpretation of Bozen as Bolzano.
Any Bolzano images > © Marcus Woeller
In other words, it is a contemporary historical and culturally exciting place that should not be left to tourists of the age of 55 and over with their windbreakers, permed hair and hiking sandals. Because at the end of May when Bozen celebrates the very cliché “Speckfest” (“Bacon Feast”) with brass music and Walther von der Vogelweide, South Tyrol is also a region in motion. With the Museion , the city has already had a museum for contemporary art for 20 years, which just now added a spectacular new building—and should be regarded as capable of competing with other European museums.
The international Manifesta Biennial (till Nov. 2nd) also does not exactly make things easy for itself. Firstly, it does not take place in the city but along the 150-kilometer axis along the Brenner freeway. The curators count on people with an interest in art that use the transit route and on artfully incorporating historical buildings, like a former aluminum melting plant in Bozen. Here, an Indian curator trio surprises visitors with its intimate knowledge of South Tyrol history—globalization as usual. The “Transart” (till Oct. 11th) Festival has already more intensely taken this direction for years. It brings music, performance and fine art directly to established companies and factories. What started as a clever sponsoring project has grown into a forum for cultural exchange.
Any Manifesta images > © Manifesta 7
Laurin and Dietrich aren’t battling it out anymore today. The first-rate culinary area, known for cheese, bacon, apple and wine, has been spared the escalating ethnic fights seen in other regions where various cultures and languages converge. Alto Adige, as South Tyrol is otherwise known, remains Italian. One not only senses it in the climate and surprisingly southern vegetation but in the evening—when the day tourists disappear and the street named Obstgasse is transformed into a virile open-air bar. At the same time, South Tyrol remains an Alpine sociotope of meadows, mountains, cowbells, wooden balconies, geraniums and tyrolean hats do not suffice—for anyone. This summer stands under the sign of reorientation.
Text > Marcus Woeller
www.bozen-bolzano.it
www.museion.it
www.manifesta.it
www.suedtirol.info
Comments
Got something to say?