Photo Gallery Art as Asylum Seeker
Antonio Manfredi is the founder and director of CAM, the Contemporary Art Museum of Casoria, a municipality near Naples. Over the years, it has collected roughly 1,000 pieces of contemporary art from 80 artists around the world, including photographs, sculptures, video installations and paintings. It is also used as a space for performance pieces. "People usually tell me that the space seems very Berlin," Manfredi told SPIEGEL ONLINE.
Manfredi's museum has hosted exhibitions that are critical of the mafia. He believes that might have something to do with the threats he has received and the damage to his museum. "The mafia doesn't need to say outright 'We are going to kill you!'" Manfredi explains. "They are very subtle. You might receive a message saying you should give some thought to hiring a private security company. If you live here, you know that's a strong threat."
Manfredi is particularly bothered by the way Italy treats its art. He specifically mentions the collapse of a house in the ancient city of Pompeii late last year -- which he blames on official corruption and indifference. "I look at what they do with Pompeii," he says, "and I can only ask myself: 'What are they going to let happen to the art at a little museum like mine?'"
Earlier this month, Manfredi sent a letter to Chancellor Angela Merkel requesting asylum for his museum in Germany. "My real message is," says Manfredi, "if the Italian government isn't capable of taking care of its cultural treasures, then let another country do it. This is a scream of warning from Italian art to the world."
The mafia remains a significant presence in daily life in Naples and the surrounding area. Here, trash piles up in late 2010 during one of the many strikes by garbage collectors. Many believe the Camorra, the local mafia organization in Naples, is responsible.
