Imago Mundi. La scultura senza tempo di François Cerise

The fascinating Sarriod de La Tour Castle in Saint Pierre hosts an interesting exhibition dedicated to the talented sculptor François Cerise from the Aosta Valley.

After the exhibition Imagines Pietatis, dedicated to the production of sacred subjects, it is now the turn of an overview of Cerise's sculptures inspired by everyday life. The link between the two exhibitions is Saint Orso offering ‘sabots’ to the poor: a scene beloved of local hagiography transposed into the ever-present reality of the Saint Orso Fair.

The exhibition intends to renew the homage to François Cerise, one of the undisputed protagonists of traditional Aosta Valley wood sculpture, inviting the public to reflect on the delicate distinction between craftsman and artist, both words originated from the Latin ars, art, and over the centuries evolved between manual skill and creativity, between knowledge and productivity.

Symbolising  the emblematic synthesis of this professional figure, François Cerise provides his own ‘image of the world’ with his works, perfectly set in a castle that is the result of an era when with the guilds of trades and the figure of the craftsman began to be defined as a specific professional figure, capable of combining manual activity and aesthetic taste.