High jewelry, art and innovation at Expo 2020 Dubai Bulgari celebrates Italian excellence at Expo 2020 Dubai and chooses the artist Simone Lingua for the design and construction of “Sotiria”, an artwork that combines design and architecture in homage to beauty, craftsmanship and Made in Italy. With the official launch of Expo 2020 Dubai, the Italian Pavilion opens its doors to the many initiatives promoted by Bulgari following the evocative motto of the event, “Beauty Connects People”. The concept of Beauty in an Italian key will be enhanced as a harmony of visions and strong contaminations of a centuries-old tradition, but always ready for experimentation. From 1 October, visitors to the pavilion will be involved in the extraordinary artistic and cultural proposals of the Bvlgari Brand – platinum sponsor of Expo 2020 Dubai – a fascinating showcase corridor welcomes every spectator and allows them to admire a composition of artistic and architectural excellence that outline the path discovering a series of works: from the reproduction of the neon designed by Lucio Fontana for the 1951 Triennale to the reproduction of the Fibonacci sequence by Mario Merz up to the site specific installation “Sotiria”, signed by the artist designer Simone Lingua in exclusive for the Bulgari maison as a tribute to Italian craftsmanship and its ability to interpret tradition in a contemporary key.   A union of Sotiria jewelry and contemporary art – named after Sotirio Bulgari, founder of the company – will dominate the central section of the Pavilion with an extension of 150 square meters. As a tribute to Bulgari, the artist has chosen to identify the concept of beauty with the most brilliant of precious stones: the diamond. Composed of seven suspended “necklaces”, the work evokes the perfection of gems through 63 blown glass icosahedra that light up with infinite flashes thanks to a prism of internal light. And it is precisely light that plays a key role in enhancing the splendor of symbolic diamonds and at the same time triggering the perception of a reality that transcends human experience. Each “diamond” is in fact placed inside a chromed dome, which multiplies its reflections. A spy mirror is interposed between the diamond and the viewer, designed to dissolve and become transparent once backlit. The work is connected to a software, designed to detect the interaction between visitors and to transmit an impulse that will give light to the installation, creating a gradual affect-fading of the spy mirrors and allowing the viewer to see beyond the reflection of themselves. itself and the surrounding environment. Thus we discover the authentic value of beauty, which “connects” people and inspires them to go beyond what is tangible. The connections contained in Sotiria’s numerology are also suggestive: the installation’s suspended necklaces are 7 like the United Arab Emirates, and since this year also marks the 50th anniversary of their foundation, 50 of the 63 mirrored domes are gilded. On each necklace, there are 9 diamonds, another significant number because it is linked to completeness and fulfillment.