While
meanderings in the medieval city of Viterbo I have an insight into the
meaning of my relentless walking of the past years. While approaching
Via San Pellegrino I suddenly realize that I am a contemporary pilgrim.
Walking for me has been not only a means of knowing —and experiencing
places— but a spiritual practice. Each step is an encounter between my
body and the surface of the earth. Walking is an embodiment of the
relationship between the self and the world; it is recorded by GPS and
superimposed to maps. I find an aesthetic intent in every walk, and the
art production is in the cartographies generated by mapping my steps
into different representations of the earth surface.
Even the movement sequence "Finding the Axis Mundi" is somehow analogous to the Buddhist prostration.
My pilgrimage in Viterbo has been reconnecting me with the meaning of symbols in the cities. Some of the most recognizable features of Viterbo urban places, have become a meditation on walls, doors, clocks, and...lions. The lion of the city coat of arms is present everywhere:fountains, shrines, corners of palaces. Shall I find meaning in the strength of the lion? Definitely my life path these days is crowded with hyenas and vultures...Porta della Verità is already providing the answer.
