Starting tomorrow, the Instituto Italiano de Cultura in Madrid presents the exhibition La familia Cascella. Beyond time, curated by Guicciardo Sassoli and open to the public until 8 November 2025.
The exhibition is a project conceived for the exhibition spaces by the Institute, which aims to celebrate the unique history of the Cascella family in the ever-evolving world panorama: five generations of Italian artists who, from their progenitor Basilio Cascella (born in Pescara in 1860), have participated in first person in all the most advanced artistic manifestations of the last 150 years.
The exhibition includes historical documents that allow a philological reconstruction of the artists’ activity, with the presence of some of their most significant works, up to their latest creations. Paintings and drawings by Basilio Cascella (1860-1950), in addition to the original magazines he directed, some works of his sons Tommaso (1890-1968) and Michele Cascella (1892-1988), artists who soon reached fame and who repeatedly participated in the Venice Biennials from 1920, a tradition that has continued for family members to this day. There are also works by Gioacchino (1903-1987), ceramist and last son of Basilio Cascella.
The post-war generation is represented by the important sculptures and monument projects of Pietro Cascella (1921-2008) and his brother Andrea Cascella (1919-1990). Both sculptors, sons of Tommaso, represented Italy in countless international projects. The fourth generation is represented by Pietro’s children: Tommaso Cascella (1951), who paints, sculpts and draws; the textile art of Susanna Cascella (1956); and the dream surrealism of Jacopo Cascella (1972). The innovative tradition is represented in the fifth generation by Tommaso’s children: Matteo Cascella (aka Matteo Basilé, 1974), who through photography and the latest possibilities of technology explores the human, the transcendental; and Davide Sebastian Cascella (alias Davide Sebastian, 1981), in the field of performance related to sound research, video art and photography.
The exhibition is organized and sponsored by the Italian Embassy and the Instituto Italiano de Cultura in Madrid, with the support of the Regional Council of Abruzzo and the coordination of the Association Casa Abruzzo, on an organizational and curatorial project of the non-profit association Nuova Artemarea, chaired by Guicciardo Sassoli de’ Bianchi Strozzi.
