From June 15 to November 30, the art of Helidon Xhixha illuminates the Italian Residence and the center of Tirana.

With the work of the artist Helidon Xhixha, the Italian Embassy in Tirana celebrates thirty years of friendship and solidarity between Italy and Albania, in commemoration of the arrival in Italy of tens of thousands of Albanians, by occasional boats and boats, on the shores of Puglia in 1991.
The life experience of Helidon Xhixha, who thirty years ago arrived in Puglia to find the future, and his art, capable of spreading an energy of force, light and constant renewal, are the symbol of a cultural union of incredible value and are the living proof of one of the success stories that have brought thirty years of Albanians’ integration in Italy.

In recent decades, Helidon Xhixha (born in Durrës in 1970) has become an important personality in the contemporary art scene, being highly praised by critics at the international level. Xhixha’s innovative vision and technique are translated into a monumental public art that redefines the relationship between sculpture and the environment that surrounds it. After inheriting his passion for the arts from his father, Helidoni was educated in Italy, at the Brera Academy of Fine Arts, where he was able to develop his technique.

His three-dimensional stainless steel sculptures bring to light the inner relationship that exists between the work of art and the environment that surrounds it. 

As part of various cultural initiatives that during the summer will celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of solidarity between Italy and Albania on both Adriatic coasts, the Italian Embassy in Tirana, in cooperation with the Municipality of Tirana, inaugurated one of the main squares in the center of Tirana, recently renovated square, which regained the name “Italy Square”, with the monumental work “Big Bang”, on the occasion of the Republic Day. The artist’s monumental sculpture (480X480X480 cm), a steel sphere with bright and brilliant elements, communicates in a suggestive context that combines rationalist architectural elements of the last century, characteristic of the genius of the Italian architect Gherardo Bosio, with contemporary architectural art of Marco Casamonti, who designed the new National Stadium.

On June 15, the Italian Residence in Tirana reopens its doors to the citizens, hosting the first anthological exhibition of the artist Xhixha in Albania. In cooperation with Harabel, the main association for the promotion of contemporary art in Albania, the Embassy will organize guided tours and workshops forschools in the morning as well as free guided tours in the afternoon.

/Klara Ruci/