The History

Luci d'Artista was created in 1998 by the City of Turin with the conviction that art should contribute to the common good and inhabit the streets, squares and buildings. An unprecedented and at the time innovative exhibition of contemporary art, later imitated by other Italian and foreign cities. Over the years, some of the greatest Italian and international artists have contributed works that have become part of the collective imagination, perfectly integrated into the urban fabric of the city, of which they are now a symbol. Light installations capable of reaching a large audience. But that's not all: when - towards the end of the 1990s - Turin needed to rethink its identity, presenting itself as the City of Contemporary Art, the Luci d'Artista naturally became the image capable of conveying the message with immediacy.   

The Lights were born as exceptional illuminations to celebrate the Christmas festivities, and immediately became the object of an ambitious objective: to create a public collection expressing ‘a high culture capable of communicating with everyone’, as Fiorenzo Alfieri (Polignano a Mare, 1943 - Turin, 2020) the visionary creator of the project, wrote in 1998:   

A few years ago I happened to read in the Turin newspapers that the shopkeepers would not organise the traditional illuminations for Christmas. [...] I thought to myself: ‘Would it be conceivable for Paris, Vienna, Frankfurt to be left in the dark at Christmas?’ Evidently, in those cities, Christmas lights were not only entrusted to the goodwill of the shopkeepers, but were supported by the public administration as a tribute to the citizens and as a sign of welcome for tourists. As soon as I was appointed councillor for commerce and the promotion of the city [...] I proposed a pact: ‘the municipality will help the merchants who want to illuminate the streets and squares for Christmas, but on the condition that we all work together to put up quality displays in the urban spaces’. It was easy to move from this proposal to the intuition that to ensure the quality of the decorative materials, we could call on the help of our artist friends in Turin. We made the first attempt in the run-up to Christmas 1997. [...] I proposed to Emanuele Luzzati to design a high-impact intervention.    

But every project, in order to continue to be alive, needs to evolve. Luci d'Artista is therefore embarking on a process of mutation of its identity in order to become a true institution dedicated to the contemporary, one that is even more loved and known, open and sustainable, active all year round and not just during the winter months.   

His evolution began in 2022, on the occasion of the 25th edition, when the City of Turin decided to entrust the management of the project’s implementation to the Fondazione Torino Musei. For the first time in the history of Luci d'Artista, the Foundation appointed a curator to lead the event: art critic Antonio Grulli (La Spezia, 1979). Starting with the 26th edition in 2023/2024, Grulli undertook the ambitious goal of creating a true artistic research institution, equipped with its own curatorial vision and year-round programming made possible by the new Accademia della Luce, the Luci d'Artista Public Program. All of this aims to allow Luci d'Artista to transcend the city’s boundaries and fully express its potential, to enhance a unique and extraordinary collection, and to achieve strong and stable international recognition for the event.