Renato Adami was born and has always lived in Cioi, a rural location where Antonio Erba, an engineer from Milan and prolific novelist, loved to spend his summers.
It was at Cioi that Renato, who is now enjoying retirement, gave free rein to his great creativity from a very young age.
From bricklayer to carpenter to artist.
He loves to invent and work with his hands
But also a gardener who for two years won first place in the “Bussolengo fiorito” competition.
In 2018 he managed to grow a 443 kg pumpkin which was awarded and exhibited in Piovezzano.
A new life for the old iron recovered in the Cioi area
I was particularly struck by some works of art created using scrap metal. recovered to the Cioi.
Renato saw his father, his uncle, and the country folk use iron tools. Progress then discarded them, and they became useless.
Furthermore, when the Cioi demolished the stables and porches to build habitable houses, the iron from the windows survived.
He was sorry to see all this Iron unused, a pile of scrap that we occasionally stopped to collect.
So years ago he began collecting and saving pieces, with the plan to one day put them on display.
And 8 years ago, the idea was born! She kept the irons with their own functions (like scales, bed warmers, and more) as they are.
While he thought of working the remaining parts (nails, strips, bolts, etc.) to create images and figures.
First cutting the piece to the necessary proportions, then patiently shaping it with hammer blows to give it the desired shape, like a true artist!
He has created more than twenty unique and original works and he proudly describes some of them:
"Walking with the dog": the dog's legs are horseshoes, its body is a bolt used to lock doors, its head is a hammer, and the leash is also a bolt, but thinner. The child is simpler, made of welded strips.
"The Turkey": The body is made from a horseshoe and two cow hooves. The tail is made from a hoe, and the head and neck are made from a nail and a ring hook.
The little girl, larger than the other objects, is very elaborate, with hair, eyes, nose, and mouth. She smiles, is cheerful, and appears to be fully dressed, wearing a skirt and carrying a fashionable handbag that is nothing more than a lock.
All made exclusively and rigorously of iron.
But no explanation is necessary, they are so well and carefully crafted that just one glance is enough to immediately understand what Renato Adami wanted to depict, based on what he had and with a lot of imagination in finding the right placement of the various pieces.
Renato Adami's creativity and passion, a burst of emotion
Observing the farmer, thanks to the rusty iron and the real piece of modeled sickle, I could perceive the fatigue of hard work in the fields.
The elderly gentleman with the cane, on the other hand, conveyed tenderness to me. Age advances, but one faces it with strength, because life is the most beautiful gift.
When Renato invents and creates, he focuses and frees his mind. But beyond relaxation, it also becomes a moment of leisure and fun for him.
The pleasure of doing and completing his work fills his heart with joy and fills him with satisfaction!
Unfortunately, however, nowadays the Cioi have run out of scrap metal to salvage, otherwise who knows how many more objects would have been born from Renato's mind and hands!
If you pass by here, don't just stop to admire the statues of the Erba family, but ask for Renato, a very welcoming and cheerful man.
With pleasure and humility he will accompany you to discover the works exhibited in his wonderful garden and his inventions.
A huge thank you to Renato Adami for his teachings: in a society where there's no repair and a tendency to immediately discard everything, he not only recovered and preserved pieces of scrap metal, including some seemingly useless ones, but transformed them into beautiful works of art that convey emotion. He was able to valorize this scrap metal, ingeniously giving it a new lease of life..
And who knows, maybe one day he'll be invited to exhibit to a wider audience. With his trademark enthusiasm and simplicity, he'll share the beauty he's created, driven only by creativity and passion.
