On the occasion of the exhibition "Dracula and the myth of the vampires" hosted at the Milan Triennale until 24 March 2013, the Provincial and Municipal Avis of Milan promotes blood donations at the exhibition site on Thursday 7 and Wednesday 13 March 2013.
“We have decided to associate our name with this exhibition – the President of Provincial Avis, Natale Casati, and the President of the Town Hall, Luca Maria Munari – to highlight the great ethical and symbolic value of blood as an irreplaceable element for the life and survival of all of us. This initiative represents, for us, an innovative and unusual opportunity to underline how it is more important than ever to make one's contribution to address the ever-increasing need for blood and blood products in the medical, surgical and scientific fields".
La exhibition was conceived, produced and organized by Alef-cultural project management in partnership with the Milan Triennale and in collaboration with the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. It will remain open until 24 March and is dedicated to one of the most complex and evocative ancient legends: "Dracula and the myth of the vampires".
Approximately 100 works are exhibited including paintings, engravings, drawings, documents, historical objects, stage costumes and videos – it deals with and investigates the figure of the vampire par excellence, starting from the historical dimension to proceed to literary transfiguration, up to the cinematographic transposition and finally, to the sociological implications of the myth of Dracula. A real journey into the vampire world which, at the same time, analyzes the historical and contemporary context, reviewing period objects and contemporary design, ancient myths and today's stars. In 1912 Bram Stoker died, the writer who, in 1897, published the novel "Dracula".
The world celebrates the centenary of his disappearance with a series of important events. The exhibition is therefore an opportunity to pay homage to the Irish novelist's literary creature: Dracula, the immortal vampire, prince of the night, forerunner of a long series of more or less fascinating rivals.
The figure of the vampire, starting from its more distant folkloric and medieval past, has in fact experienced an extraordinary development within the Enlightenment, romantic and contemporary culture, to culminate today in the Twilight saga and in a sort of "vampiromania" that continues to seduce teenagers and beyond.
Understand why the vampire suddenly appeared on the scene of the European imagination in the eighteenth century to never leave it again, re-reading Bram Stoker's Dracula in images, thinking about Dracula by looking at everything that was produced after Bram Stoker, but also getting to know Dracula before Bram Stoker: this is the intent of the exhibition.
The various declinations of the phenomenon of vampirism are therefore addressed in three main sections: "The reality behind the myth", edited by Margot Rauch, curator of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, from which come a series of exceptional historical documents and works including the first portrait of Count Vlad, a figure who historically existed in the 1992th century and is associated with the legendary Dracula; “Bram Stoker: Dracula” in collaboration with the Bram Stoker Estate, which proposes a reflection on vampirism in the literary field with particular attention to Stoker's work explored through the novelist's notebooks and documents exhibited for the first time in Italy; "Dying of light: cinema and vampires" by the film critic Gianni Canova who, through a series of video projections immerses us in the history of vampirism on the big screen, from the first black and white films of the early twentieth century to the sagas of the last years. Particular attention is paid to "Bram Stoker's Dracula" (XNUMX) by Francis Ford Coppola, of which some storyboards and the original screenplay are presented for the first time in Italy. For the occasion, the armor worn by Gary Oldman is also presented to the public – based on a design by costume designer Ishioka Eiko – exceptionally reconstructed by the Hollywood producers of the original.
The exhibition is then enriched by two interesting variations on the theme. Costume historian Giulia Mafai offers an original interpretation of the identity of the vampire and, in particular, of the female vampire. Splendid stage costumes offer a particular look at the figure of the “Vamp Woman”, a creature who superimposes the concept of a woman who destroys through the power of seduction on the female vampire – historically embodied by Elizabeth Bathory and literary by Carmilla.
A fascinating digression into the world of fashion is the one that arises from the collaboration with L'Uomo Vogue which presents a selection of fashion references to the world of the un-deads through the images of brands that have adopted the style of vampires becoming lovers of the genre: from Comme des Garçons, to John Galliano, from Alexander McQueen to Rick Owens up to the recent interpretation of Prada.
Customs and fashion open the doors to the "Design of the Vampire" through a story in images of the residences and places frequented by the king of the night, with a reflection on the role of Dracula as a "builder of the city" signed by the architect Italo Rota.
The exhibition itinerary is completed by a special tribute dedicated to Guido Crepax. Eighteen unpublished drawings on display illustrating the meeting between Dracula and Valentina, one of his most famous creatures.
The set-up makes use of scenographic reconstructions and suggestive projections to accompany the visitor towards an emotional experience to discover the fascinating universe of the un-deads.
An initiative of profound value is the one promoted together with Avis, the Association of Italian Blood Volunteers, which – on the occasion of the exhibition “Dracula and the myth of the vampires” – will make its activities known and raise public awareness of the values of giving and solidarity.
The volunteers and doctors of the Association will open the doors of their mobile unit to introduce the world of donation up close, answer visitors' questions and curiosities and distribute information material.
