VASILY GROSSMAN
The Power of the Human in Man

Guided tour duration: 60 minutes

Exhibition promoted by the Study Center Vasily Grossman
Curated by strong>Anna Bonola, Maurizia Calusio, Claudia De Benedetti, Anna Krasnikova, Giovanni Maddalena, Raffaela Paggi, Michele Rosboch, Pietro Tosco, Julija Volochova

In collaboration with Associazione Esserci, Centro Culturale Pier Giorgio Frassati ETS, Fondazione Casale Ebraica ETS, Fondazione Grossman ETS, Fondazione Russia Cristiana

The exhibition is presented on the occasion of the 120th anniversary of the writer’s birth and offers an innovative reading journey through the work of one of the most important authors of the twentieth century. Visitors are invited to retrace the key stages in Grossman’s literary evolution, from his youth marked by the socialist ideal to his arrival at a metaphysical and religious realism. Unpublished photographs of Grossman and a short film based on one of the episodes from Life and Fate complete the unique perspective this exhibition offers on the great Russian writer.

The exhibition is inspired by the Star of David, symbol of Grossman’s Jewish roots. By deconstructing its form, a path is created that unfolds in six sections, each corresponding to a symbolic place in Grossman’s literary production:

Berdičev: This section recounts the author’s early literary steps and his adherence to socialist realism, which was from the beginning marked by a quest for truth through writing.
Treblinka: The trauma of war and the Shoah, the death of his mother, and his experience as a war correspondent lead Grossman to confront absolute horror. This phase gives rise to reports and novels that bring forth profound questions about humanity and evil.
Stalingrad: With Life and Fate, Grossman rethinks war in a new and original way, denouncing the totalitarian nature of both Nazism and Communism, and emphasizing how freedom and human dignity survive even in the most oppressive systems.
Pushkin Museum, Moscow: The vision of Raphael’s Sistine Madonna marks a spiritual and poetic turning point, opening Grossman to the dimension of mystery, beauty, and motherhood as a response to dehumanization.
Yaroslavl Station, Moscow: In Everything Flows…, written after the manuscript of Life and Fate was seized, Grossman reflects on individual responsibility in the face of evil and the need for forgiveness.
Armenia: His final journey and the writing of May Goodness Be With You! bear witness to the universality of his new realism, capable of embracing the suffering and hope of all the persecuted.

At the center of the exhibition, a cinema room screens the short film A Phone Call from Stalin, inspired by a scene from Life and Fate, depicting the power of truth and human fragility in the face of ideology. The short, produced by Wonderage Production, is directed by Nicola Abbatangelo and features Alessandro Preziosi, with a screenplay by Giovanni Maddalena.

The itinerary is designed to help the public empathize with the evolution of Grossman’s literary work, showing how even in the most totalitarian contexts, freedom and truth can emerge through gestures of beauty and goodness. The exhibition, therefore, not only retraces the literary journey of a great writer, but also invites reflection on the possibility of a happy destiny for humanity, founded on the recognition of truth and mercy.

With the support of Intesa Sanpaolo
With the support of Fondazione CRT
With the contribution of the Fondazione Grossman and of the Università degli Studi del Molise (Progetto Prin 2022 “Crisi degli esperti e trasformazioni sociali”)