Jonathan Livingstone Seagull it is the monumental sculpture located in the middle of the South Pier, on a walk that is in the middle of the sea characterized by a real open-air museum (named "MAM, art museum on the sea”). The rocks, cliffs, and stones have been shaped and worked by contemporary artists, adapting them to a wide variety of forms: human, animal, and more. But here the monument to Jonathan Seagull reigns supreme.
The work reaching towards the sky
Made by the artist Mario Lupo in 1986, on the initiative of the Circolo dei Sambenedettesi, the monument is a large circle in bronze, ten meters high, projected towards the blue of the sea and the sky. It rests on a base on which waves are sculpted. The inner part of the circle contains some seagulls indistinct from each other. But Jonathan Seagull It is placed on the outer line of the circle, soaring towards the sky, defying the contrary winds with its spread and light perforated wings. Almost as if it were an invitation to fly ever higher, to break away from the group to find one's own world, oneself, one's own thoughts and one's own freedom. Jonathan the Seagull represents i fishermen from San Benedetto. It is the symbol of the generous and effective industriousness of the people of San Benedetto who are constantly looking for the best for their city, of the will and tenacity typical of the sea people, accustomed to silently facing and overcoming obstacles and difficulties to reach ever new goals.
Mario Lupo and his experience as a fisherman as a muse for his art
In the bronze figures there is all the art but also the spirit of Mario Lupo, who after having sailed the seas for years, wanted to cast his own in bronze eternal message of love, freedom and hopeOriginally from Abruzzo, he spent many years in Ancona, where he developed his artistic skills. From 1954, he began holding solo exhibitions and shows in Italy's major cities, including New York, Stockholm, Paris, Saint-Étienne, Geneva, Zurich, Amsterdam, Nuremberg, and Toronto. He died in 1992.
“Jonathan Seagull” by Richard Bach
The sculpture was also created to remember Jonathan Livingston Seagull from the famous book by the American writer Richard BachThe work, written in the 1970s, was a huge international bestseller. The novella focuses on Jonathan Seagull and his passion for flight as a metaphor for life and freedom. In particular, the self-improvement journey of the seagull who learns to fly/live through self-denial, sacrifice, and the joy of doing so. A book about freedom and liberation from mental patterns. Significant is the dedicated which Bach reported at the beginning of his novel: “To the true Jonathan Seagull who lives deep within us all”. The monument wants to launch a positive message to the city, troubled by the manifestations of widespread youth discontent. It remains a pole of attraction for all those, citizens and tourists, who see in its aerial lightness an invitation to free your mindTo fly high to look further and conquer freedom of body and spirit.
