Ribbon cutting for the 21st edition of the sand sculpture exhibition. Meeting between the children of the city and the friars of the Sacred Convent of Assisi, delivery of a parchment for the Holy Father.
A message of peace, unity and welcome. It is the one that left Jesolo today and destined for Pope Francis, transmitted by the young people of the city through the friars of the Sacred Convent of Assisi who participated in the inauguration of the >21st edition of the Jesolo Sand Nativity.
This year, in fact, the two cities are united by the figure of Saint Francis to whom the exhibition of sand sculptures is dedicated while the Sacred Convent hosts a monumental work depicting the Nativity and the "poor man" Assisi” made with Jesolo sand.
Together with the mayor Christofer De Zotti and the councilor for tourism Alberto Maschio, the ceremony was attended by the regional councilor Lucas Pavanetto, fra Marco Moroni, father custodian of the Sacred Convent of San Francesco in Assisi, with fra Simone Tenuti, then the parish priests of Jesolo Don Gianni Fassina and Don Lucio Cilia.
During the inauguration ceremony, the students of the Jesolo schools gave Fra Marco Moroni a parchment with a message intended for Pope Francis which they read: To Pope Francis, we are like grains of sand: only close, united and supportive can we become a wonderful work of art. This is our wish. This is our hope.
The itinerary, composed of 12 sculptures created by 14 artists from all over the world, is entitled “In the footsteps of Francis of Assisi” and traces episodes of the life of the Saint, recognized as bringing a message of universal peace and welcome. Closing the itinerary is a large Nativity on which a sculptor of Russian origin (Vladim Gryadov) and one of Ukrainian origin (Slava Borecki) worked side by side.
The 2023 edition is embellished by the wooden work “The Scream”, created by the sculptor Marco Martalar and positioned at the entrance to the exhibition. The work embodies the cry of the woods hit by the gusts of wind from Vaia. A hand reaching upwards, trying to extend from the earth. The attempt to personify the value of its components: the wooden remains of the woods of the Asiago plateau, already naturally inclined to regain new forms and continue the natural cycle of existence.
"The Jesolo Sand Nativity is an important event for supporting charitable initiatives but, even more so, for sending messages, that of the Nativity, of Christianity, and therefore of our culture, but over time we have also tried to link ourselves to current affairs – declared the mayor of the City of Jesolo, Christofer De Zotti -. This year we explored a new path by discovering, thanks to the collaboration with the Sacred Convent of Assisi, the figure of Saint Francis who brings with him the theme of the environment and sustainability but obviously also those of peace and hospitality. The hope is to continue this friendly relationship born with the Sacred Convent".
A few hours earlier, in the council room of the Municipality of Jesolo, the students of the Cornaro, D'Annunzio and Calvino institutes of Jesolo presented to the friars of the Sacred Convent the result of an important project for the interpretation of the figure of San Francesco conceived and then developed by the Monsignor Giovanni Marcato cultural association. The question from which their works were inspired was: if Francis lived in the present day, who would he meet? The answer came from a series of works that the young students from Jesolo created also using artificial intelligence to imagine the Saint Francis of 2023.
"I think that Saint Francis was exactly as the kids described him to us in their works, it was precisely with simplicity that he was able to come into contact – was the comment of fra Marco Moroni, custodian of the Sacred Convent of San Francesco in Assisi -. Today we often find ourselves faced with constructed people, we need to present ourselves who knows how to appear pleasant, desirable, likable. And then we forget to be who we are. It seems to me that there are many who today can be that Saint Francis who meets, because in addition to the constructed people there are many who are shaped by the meeting and the event. By meeting the other we discover ourselves, and the less constructed we are, the more easily we are able to meet the other. All this happened in Jesolo and is happening".
