Four Days of Naples, Luigi Grossi's "Broken Column" displayed at the entrance to the Prefecture

Luigi Grossi's "Broken Column" returns to the entrance of the Government Palace in Naples to commemorate all those who fell during the liberation from Nazism during the Four Days of Naples, 27-30 September 1943. Grossi's work is installed at the entrance to the Prefecture of Naples next to the commemorative plaque dedicated to Francesco Selvaggi , a hospitable friend of Neapolitan Catholics during the clandestine anti-fascist struggle and the first Prefect of liberated Naples.

A wound that is always alive "The Broken Column," a commemorative installation by artist Luigi Grossi for the Four Days of Naples, expresses a wound that lives on in the heart of the city: that of the fallen," reads the presentation note by Marianastasia Lettieri . " And not just those at sea, which is evoked by the eponymous column located on Via Partenope, a source of inspiration for the artist. Luigi Grossi's installation aims to be an "Angel of Memory" whose flapping wings revive the memory of those who fell on Neapolitan soil. The column bears the weight of memory not only of those who sacrificed themselves for liberation from Nazi-Fascism during the Four Days of Naples between September 27 and 30, 1943, but, in a fraternal embrace, welcomes the victims of every time and place. Headless and faceless, as would be history without memory. A cloud envelops the Column, ready to bathe the freshness of consciences with its tears. The Column Spezzata is a warning not to forget , yesterday as today, the lives shattered under the weight of history: some for love of country, in the hope of a better future; some who will never see the future because they are victims of genocide, dictated only by the thirst for power. The only hope: the redemptive function of Memory.

From street life to the art world Luigi Grossi was born in Naples in 1949. At the tender age of twelve, he began apprenticing with his uncle Sassone Corsi, one of the first shopkeepers in the Spanish Quarter, learning from him the ancient art of gilding and picture framing. Taken from the streets and saved by his uncle from conditions of social hardship in 1960s Naples, craftsmanship was a lifeline for Grossi. Then the craftsman began to frequent art galleries and the first meetings with artists began, from which the sacred flame of Art was lit in Grossi. Thus began his artistic training in 1975, linked to figures of the caliber of Notte, Chiancone, Brancaccio and Montefusco ; in particular, Raffaele Lippi left an indelible mark on him. Grossi came to the attention of the public and critics in 1999 with the exhibition “When Thought Becomes a Message” at the Galleria La Gioconda in Naples. Some of his works are exhibited at the Bank of Italy in Naples, the Regional Council of Campania , at Villa Campolieto in Ercolano , at the Caffè Greco in Rome , at the Palizzi Museum of Modern Art and at the Arca Museum of Contemporary Religious Art in the Monumental Complex of Santa Maria la Nova in Naples . Several solo exhibitions include: Vibrazioni Materiche at Castel Nuovo in Naples in 2005, “In the Beginning Was the Line” at the Royal Palace in Naples in 2008, Essenza at Villa Macrina in Torre del Greco in 2009, “Emily Dickinson's Room” at the Correale di Terranova Museum in Sorrento in 2013 and “Le Radici del Reale” at the Royal Palace of Caserta in 2015. Among his latest exhibitions are “Nei Colori il Vangelo” which in 2023 inaugurated the Mopa in Frattamaggiore, “Esplosione d'artista” in 2025 at Villa Bruno in San Giorgio a Cremano and his “Regina di Oropa” which became a Pilgrim Madonna for the Basilicas of Naples, making Grossi an exponent of Contemporary Sacred Art. Now in the Prefecture Palace Grossi is re-proposing his “Broken Column” on the occasion of the Four Days to commemorate the fallen of all times and all places.