The red horn of discord. The giant installation in the shape of a horn placed in front of Caserta’s Royal Palace has caused an outcry.
The 70,000-euro horn installation, called “Good luck, Caserta,” appeared a couple of weeks ago in front of the 18th-century Baroque building, a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is the work of Neapolitan artist Lello Esposito.
Art lovers, conservation experts and a majority of the public strongly criticized the installation. Caserta’s mayor Pio Del Gaudio has now agreed to remove it, however not before speaking in its defense, claiming that, as the biggest horn in the world, it would become a tourist attraction: ''It's a positive provocation. And don't talk to me about UNESCO...they never bothered when the Palace was falling apart, and they certainly won't bother now over a horn.''
UNESCO promptly responded saying they were hoping the mayor would stop at the horn and not go any further.
The Royal Palace of Caserta was built for the Bourbon kings of Naples to rival Versailles. It was one of the largest buildings erected in Europe during the 18th century. In 1997, the Palace was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, for the following reason: “The monumental complex at Caserta is exceptional for the broad sweep of its design, incorporating not only an imposing palace and park, but also much of the surrounding natural landscape and an ambitious new town laid out according to the urban planning precepts of its time.”
The horn is to be relocated, although authorities have not said where.
