Between Ulysses and Pop Art: The Journey Continues at Gaeta Castle with Crossing Shift

In recent weeks, the name Ulysses has returned to the forefront of the collective imagination. The renewed interest in Homer’s epic invites us to rediscover the places that tradition links to his journey and makes the Riviera di Ulisse an even more fascinating destination for a summer itinerary. Among these, Gaeta stands out as one of the most iconic locations, seamlessly blending history, landscape, and culture.

And it is precisely here that a visit can become an even richer experience thanks to Crossing Shift, the exhibition on view through July 26, 2026 in the evocative Chapel of San Teodoro, inside the magnificent Angevin Castle of Gaeta, now home to the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio.

The exhibition, curated by Gina Ingrassia and Deirdre MacKenna, brings together the works of Eduardo Paolozzi—one of the founding fathers of British Pop Art—with those of Gian Mario Conti, Roberto Franchitti, and Elaine Shemilt. This artistic dialogue features nearly fifty works and uses the language of contemporary art to reflect on the major themes of memory, transformation, and freedom.

But it would be reductive to consider it merely an exhibition dedicated to Pop Art. The true protagonist is, in fact, the venue itself. The Angevin Castle, for decades a symbol of confinement and control, is now undergoing a profound metamorphosis, becoming a space open to research, culture, and dialogue. It is precisely this transition that gives the exhibition its title.

Crossing signifies an intersection: the intersection of the bars of the ancient cells, that of the crosses in the Chapel of San Teodoro, but also that of the personal and artistic journeys of the exhibition’s four featured artists.

Shift, on the other hand, refers to a turning point. It is the radical change that transforms a place of confinement into a space of sharing, knowledge, and freedom. A transformation that does not concern only the Castle, but becomes a metaphor for the artistic experience itself. Art, in fact, has the power to alter an individual’s perspective, to shift viewpoints, and to open up new possibilities for interpreting reality.

The figure of Eduardo Paolozzi takes on particular significance in this context. The son of Italian immigrants to Scotland and an internee during World War II, Paolozzi transformed the trauma of war, uprooting, and memory into a continuous tension between fragmentation and reconstruction in his works, anticipating many of the themes that still permeate contemporary society.

His work engages in dialogue with that of Gian Mario Conti, whose pieces reflect on the psychological and social confinements of contemporary humanity, while always pointing to the possibility of rebirth; Elaine Shemilt, who, through memory, gives voice to the invisible traces left by history on bodies and in places; and Roberto Franchitti, whose sculptures—created from recycled materials—tell of regeneration and the possibility of a new life.

The exhibition design also becomes an integral part of the narrative. The display structures, made of galvanized pipes, evoke the world of factories, work, emigration, and the industrial transformations of the 20th century, establishing an intense dialogue with the medieval stone of the castle and helping to weave a coherent narrative that bridges memory and the future.

The initiative, promoted by the Cultura è Libertà Association, under the patronage of the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio and in collaboration with the Municipality of Viticuso and the Paolozzi Pop Art Museum, is part of the University’s efforts to promote its historical and artistic heritage, confirming the Castle as a privileged venue for cultural production and a meeting point between research, art, and the community.

The closing event, scheduled for Saturday, July 25, at 7:30 p.m., will offer a special opportunity to experience the exhibition in an even more immersive way. Curator Gina Ingrassia will lead an original “Reading for Harp and Harmonica”, accompanied by original music by Gian Mario Conti, with narration by Ingrassia herself and artist Roberto Franchitti. Following this, a talk open to the public, moderated by Luca Palermo, will provide an opportunity to explore the themes, ideas, and meanings of the exhibition project.

For those planning a visit to the Riviera di Ulisse—perhaps following in the footsteps of the Homeric hero who is once again inspiring the general public—this exhibition offers yet another reason to stop in Gaeta. Not only to admire one of Lazio’s most fascinating castles, but to experience a journey in which the past dialogues with the present and in which art once again demonstrates its ability to transform places—and, perhaps, even those who pass through them.