'Once upon a time' by Ben Craven.



Acclaimed mosaic artist Ben Craven exhibits 'Once upon a time' at the Palazzo Bonfranceschi in Belforte del Chienti (Le Marche).  

Last night we attended the launch of a very special exhibition in an appropriately atmospheric venue. The exhibition 'Once Upon a time' by Ben Craven was set in the International Dynamic Contemporary Art Museum (otherwise known as the Palazzo Bonfranceschi) in the breathtaking hilltop town of Belforte Del Chienti. British Ben Craven has spent almost a decade living in Le Marche with his young family amongst the rural community and farmers for whom the exhibition was dedicated.

The exhibition 'Once upon a time' by Ben Craven.

As neighbour's of Ben's we too have experienced the inherent values of the Marchegano people (tireless hospitality, kinship & kindness) representing an enduring traditional Italian community, we felt the exhibition captured the core of these people.

The exhibition cannot be said better than in the words of the (MIDAC) director Alfonso Caputo in 

'The portraits by Ben Craven are very tangible. They are heavy for the matter that composes them. They are heavy for the fullness and complexity of the lives portrayed. They are heavy for the stories they contain. They are signs of a non superficial passage among the things of the daily world. They are not just faces, but also and especially the dialogues that have been developed with these people.

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A world made of earth and sweat, calluses and smiles, sunshine and fruits.

One of Ben's pieces that features in the exhibition.

Local dialects and far languages have merged into conversations made more by expressions, pauses and silences than by a frenetic stream of words. Maybe an egg or a glass of wine have done much more than a professional translator. Certainly, the smile is a passport that talks of the soul and of deep feeling.When mouth and eyes smile in unison, there cannot be a door that remains closed. Not even the most secret door. Which keep the old memories. Ben has transferred all of this in his mosaics, an ancient art but, as he shows us, still alive, as an act of gratitude for those who welcomed him without reservations and have made him one of them. It is to them that is dedicated this research. to their troubles, to their smiles, to their works, to their lives. And as in the ancient tales there could be no better start than the inherent in the title: “Once upon a time”.

Ben Craven at work cutting each individual piece for his Mosaic.
You have to admire the commitment and skill involved in mosaic making.

Listening, without haste, the passage of time that won’t be able to remove anything if the listener will preserve inside himself a small space dedicated to the magic of our land'.

Alfonso Caputo
Belforte del Chienti, June, 2012

Ben's work will be on display until June 25th so if you get the chance make sure you visit this very special exhibtion.  

 

 

Watch this space for more pictures of Ben's the exhibition launch.