Ivrea Carnival: «Our party? A faith to be lived with a pure spirit not to be lost “

The artist Luca Cristiano created a poster “Do you remember?” “I admit, I’m argumentative and also angry”

IVREA. “Do you remember…?” is the title of the manifesto that Ermenegildo Nilson (Luca Cristiano, aka Weed, is spoiled for choice on how to call it) dedicated to “non-Carnival 2022”.

In the center, perplexed and a little upset, certainly sad, the protagonist, surrounded by a series of flashes, which represent the memories that pile up in the minds of the Ivrea people on the eve of this second canceled edition. There are the most classic memories, from the Pipes and drums to the dilemma that reigns supreme every year on the banks of the Dora: “Who is the Mugnaia?”. There is the Phrygian cap and there is the smell of oranges, mimosas and scarlo. Above all, in the upper left, there is “The people in celebration”, that element in which Ermenegildo-Luca recognizes himself and which this year is not celebrating. «What to say – comments Luca -? We miss the Carnival, oh, if we miss it ».

Among the many “comics” there is also one dedicated to Picarola, a reminder of the editions of the second half of the twentieth century, and one remains blank: “Whoever buys the poster can leave it like this – explains the artist – or write this by hand. which he misses most, thus making his copy unique “. The poster was born suddenly, while Luca was walking in via Arduino: «Like all inspirations, it came suddenly, a few months ago, when it was beginning to foresee that the Carnival would not even take place this year. And for this very reason I initially dismissed the idea of ​​transforming that thought into a work. Then I thought about it, even pushed by a dear friend, Andrea Enrico. And here is the manifesto, a little homage to Carnival, a little symbol of regret and a little provocation. Because I had already made a poster last year, but it was more cheerful, it invited us to smile because, in any case, Carnival is there even when it’s not done ». In this 2022, however, the provocation is direct: «I admit, I am controversial. Just as I admit to being angry to see another year slip away without Carnival: we are missing out on something beautiful, important. So with this manifesto I want to make people think: reading what we lack means trying to understand what we give up. This year, nothing but smiling: there is to cry, especially in front of the resignation that I see winding around the city. I hope that this year some oranges will fly anyway in the sky of Ivrea, to remind us what we are losing ».

Luca’s love for Carnival is a deep and rooted love: “I do not believe that in the days of the feast the roles are reversed and that each of us interprets a self different from the one who climbed, but the opposite: we Ivrea in those days are real , we demonstrate and transmit our passions and what we believe in. We are all devotees of San Carnevale. And too often we forget how much each of us does the Carnival, with its individuality. The oranges were thrown before the teams existed, because there was already the passion, the genuine enthusiasm, the magic of our party ». The enthusiasm in his 43 years, Luca has always poured it out in the days of Carnival: «It’s a faith, period! We do not have to do Carnival for tourists or for someone’s political or personal aims. We must do it with pure spirit, to feel part of this magic that we have and that we must not disperse ».

On the restart of the Carnival after the forced stop of these years, Luca has clear ideas: “You need passion: you have to put people around the table where decisions will be made, who get goosebumps every time you say the word Carnival, every time you think of the Mugnaia or the scent of oranges. What is needed in Ivrea, we do not need managers or politicians, but someone who loves Carnival with the spirit of a true lover, who is humble and wants to hear the expectations of the people and collect the experience of the old orange-throwers, of the Mugnaie, of the Generals and of the other characters of the past, to absorb the tradition and bring it back to the Carnival to come ».