The Italian Navy exhibition
Ocean Stories. The Italian Navy exhibition is a multimedia, immersive exhibition offering visitors a complete picture of the heterogeneous world of the Italian Navy, to engage and thrill a broad audience from all sorts of diverse cultures, nations and of all ages. Organized by the Italian Navy, conceived and produced by Magister Art, Ocean Stories is dedicated to the Italian Navy’s history, values and people. The exhibition aims to communicate and promote the diverse universe of the Italian Navy through a narration arising from a multiplicity of subjective perspectives, portraying four thematic areas.
AREA 1: OCEAN PLANET
Here is where visitors encounter the Ocean, as a single enormous sea embracing the entire globe, and learn about the Italian Navy’s commitment to its discovery, protection and conservation, thanks to its underwater capabilities, scientific research and technological innovation. This section features video, photographic and infographic contents presenting the Ocean’s salient features, such as its dimensions, the volume and depth of its waters, and the percentage under marine protection.
AREA 2: “TEMPO”
The area is dedicated to the rhythms of maritime gestures and actions. Photographs and films illustrate the activities and operations typical of the Italian Navy, from the bosun’s pipe to radar clutter, from the swoosh of the wind to the wake left by a vessel as it cruises the seas and from the strikes of the ship’s bell to the creak of the sheets: every sound acting as a metronome, marking the day’s activities in shipboard life everywhere.
AREA 3: AMERIGO VESPUCCI
The heart of the exhibition is dedicated to the Amerigo Vespucci training ship, once described by the United States aircraft carrier USS Independence, on the occasion of a historical encounter on the high seas, as “the most beautiful ship in the world”. The ship voyages here become a metaphor for a tale of universal relevance: the vessel is not only Italy’s ambassador to the world, but the bearer of such values as equality between peoples, inclusion, education, training, solidarity and hospitality.
Thanks to a 3D virtual reproduction realized by the University of Florence (Italy), visitors will have the opportunity both to explore the spaces on board the Amerigo Vespucci training ship, while at the same taking a closer look at a physical scale model, measuring almost five metres in length.
AREA 4: SAILORS LEADING
The final area pays a tribute to the great crew of the Italian Navy, the people who embody its essence and human dimension. A mosaic of faces to represent the rich variety of professions that make up the Italian Navy, from expert sailors, aviators and engineers to ship’s surgeons, divers, submariners, assault units and the young midshipmen who have just embarked on life at sea.
United Nations Headquarters in New York (06 - 14 June 2024) - The exhibition is co-organised by the Italian Navy with the Permanent Representation of Italy to the United Nations, and also marks the Italian Navy’s commitment to respecting the Ocean through its preservation, conservation and protection, supporting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In fact, the opening of the exhibition will coincide with the week of World Oceans Day (8 June) and just as the Amerigo Vespucci, engaged in a world tour, is sailing along the Pacific coast of the United States.
Italian Embassy in Washington DC in the Piazza Italia space (27 June - 11 July 2024) - The exhibition continues in a second time in collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute.
Galleria Alberto Sordi in Rome (5 - 14 September 2024) - The exhibition comes to Italy for its third stop, hosted in the aisles of the iconic Galleria Alberto Sordi, formerly Galleria Colonna: built in 1922, it is a jewel of Art Nouveau architecture. Following recent redevelopment, the Galleria Sordi is now a crossroads for shopping and tourism, as well as a meeting place and landmark in the capital.
Corsie Sistine in Rome (18 September 2024) - The exhibition was set up in Rome in the evocative Corsie Sistine of the Complesso Monumentale di Santo Spirito in Sassia on the occasion of the solidarity evening promoted by Smile House Fondazione ETS, Charity Partner of the 27th EACMFS Congress. The profitable and well-established relationship between the Foundation and the Italian Navy started with the Foundation’s intervention in Haiti in 2010 and ended with the creation of the Smile House Centre in Taranto: an outpatient centre of excellence located at the Military Hospital Centre.
