Pharmacopea is the project that the Chiesi Group, together with Davines, have created with the scope of promoting a journey of rediscovery through the chemical-pharmaceutical identity of the city of Parma.
Thanks also to the involvement of company volunteers, key places teaming with local excellence, such as the Orto Botanico (Botanic Gardens) and the Antique Pharmacy San Filippo Neri, are revealed through fresh eyes and previously unpublished interpretations.
A new itinerary for the city, an ancient formulation from the 16th century reimagined for a limited edition release for 2020, a limited edition 2020 perfume, a publication dedicated to the origins of this identity and the extraordinary installation of the wonderful British artist Rebecca Louise Law, which will fit a flower sky in the San Tiburzio church. These are among the initiatives that will see companies and local organizations take part in an adventure, lying somewhere between the past and the present, through a key aspect of the territory.
This project will be a part of the program ‘Imprese Aperte’ (Open Businesses) for the year Parma 2020+21 – Italian Capital of Culture.
... when the abbot Giambattista Guatteri decided to set up the institution with the support of Ferdinando I of Borbone.
Spanning 11,000 square metres in the historic centre of the city, the central part of the grounds is designed on an Italian garden setting, with two other parts consisting of an arboretum and an area dedicated to an English style garden. Within its collections, uncovered in the modern era by activities of rearrangement and enrichment, work tools of historical figures such as the previously mentioned Giambattista Guatteri, Giorgio Jan and Giovanni Passerini, are rediscovered.
Above all, its collections, including herbariums dated between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, of which include that of the botanical physician G. B. Casapini’s medicinal plants, that of the countess Albertina Sanvitale, and that of Luigi Gardoni, demonstrate an extraordinary collection of indigenous and exotic species.
Medicinal plants, insectivores and succulents are - together with the collection of spontaneous violets, including the famous Violetta di Parma – the heart of this authentic treasure with the goal of safeguarding local biodiversity.
OPENING TIMES
It can be visited individually upon reservation from Tuesday to Friday, 10-13 and 15-18.*
* The evolution of the Emergency Situation due to COVID-19 could lead to changes to the opening hours
A symbol of a magnificent, 500-year story of pharmaceuticals and healthcare, the Galenic laboratory, once known as the ‘Spezieria of Charity’, intertwines its path with that of the ‘Congregation of Charity’, the protagonist of a cultural saga based on care, solidarity and community, which can still be experienced today thanks to the chemical and medical instruments, the ancient preparations, the printed recipe books and the manuscripts that are still kept on the wooden shelves.
Adjacent to the Chapel of San Tiburzio – built in the place that saw the rise of the first Christian church in Parma in the fifth century – the Antique Pharmacy can be considered an integral part of an ante litteram social project that aimed to take care of the needy.
The ‘Archive of Charity’, located on the upper floor of the building, preserves an impressive mass of unpublished papers and documents, useful in the reconstruction a surprising story that tells of products given to the poor, of adapted recipes created in the absence of precious substances, and of the birth of the first and very efficient urban territorial health service.
OPENING TIMES
Open on Friday and Saturday from 16 to 20*, other days by appointment. You can book your visit by e-mail at congregazione@adpersonam.pr.it
* The evolution of the Emergency Situation due to COVID-19 could lead to changes to the opening hours
Laicized and separated from the convent to avoid its closure, threatened by the Bourbon minister Du Tillot in 1766, the spezieria was managed by the Garni family until 1881.
Around 250 pieces, including vases, albarelli, flasks and mugs, are displayed on the shelves across various rooms, each of which takes its name from its characteristic contents and specific elements.
For example, the fireplace characterizes the Fire Room, where you can admire the sale counters, the nineteenth-century scales and a series of small weights using units of measurement such as dram and scruples. From here, we move through to the Hall of Mortars, dominated by frescoes and friezes designed to glorify medical science, scattered with pots in majolica or porcelain and tools indispensable to the pharmacists for the crushing and grinding of herbs.
Finally, the carved allegorical figures on the shelves justify the name of the Mermaid Room, a place dedicated to the preservation of documents about medicine and pharmacopoeia. However, it is the beakers and glass bottles characteristic of a small laboratory that suggest the activity of the production of medicines carried out by the location.
*the spezieria is a specific type of historical pharmacy, creating products and ailments using herbs and spices. There is no direct translation in English for ‘spezieria’.
Actually under renovation. Not visitable.
Employees of Davines and the Chiesi Group will be the custodians of the key locations, carrying out various activities aimed at their enhancement, as well as guiding visits and experiences between the antique pharmacy San Filippo Neri, the Herbariums of the Botanical Garden and the pharmacy of San Giovanni. thanks to the coordination of CSV Emilia-forum solidarietà, companies and volunteers will be able to meet the needs of these places through these volunteer activities.
Graziano Tonelli, director of the State Archives, was entrusted with the research and writing of a publication on the origins of the cosmetic-pharmaceutical identity of Parma. the result is a catalogue of unpublished content, which suggests the stages of an exhibition on historical testimonies.
As the first solo exhibition of the artist in italy, Florilegium will see Rebecca Louise Law’s work on organic evolution inserted into the heart of the project to revive the chemical-pharmaceutical soul of the city of Parma. as the focus of the exhibition, the ‘perishable’ installation will be site specific, set up the church of San Tiburzio and curated by OTTN Projects.
• Admission is free
• The exhibition is also suitable for children
Church of San Tiburzio
Borgo Palmia, 6 - 43121 Parma PR
NEWS:
For questions related to Florilegium, please contact the e-mail address info@ottnprojects.cm or the phone number +39 34713236474.
* The continuous evolution of the Emergency Situation due to COVID-19 could lead to changes to the opening hours
with the intention of not losing or letting a heritage of high historical value be undermined, support has been launched for a scholarship for the herbarium, dedicated both to the recovery of medieval formulations of cosmetics, and the cataloguing of the autochthonous biodiversity of medicinal plants.
The collaboration with the antique pharmacy San Filippo Neri aims to study the archive of the congregation, with particular interest being paid to mining methods, active ingredients and native plants. as a moment of restitution of an unexplored heritage, Davines is also undertaking the task of bringing an antique 16th century formulation back to life, a limited edition release for 2020.
To enhance the heritage which has now developed into the chemical-pharmaceutical identity of the territory today, a touristic itinerary has been imagined, allowing people to trace the evolution and history of the territory.
This path is a way to retell, from various points of view, the story of the chemical-pharmaceutical sector, weaving its historical origins in the local area to the industrial sector that has allowed the development of its practices and knowledge.
The itinerary aims to uncover the crucial yet submerged roots through a path developed from various perspectives, including from cosmetics, history of perfume and history of chemical-pharmaceuticals.
The objective of the project Pharmacopea is to rediscover and reaffirm these symbolic locations, demonstrating the charm that the territory can bring to tourism attracted by sustainability, cosmetics and the tradition of wellbeing.
Based in Parma, Italy, Chiesi Farmaceutici is an international research-oriented group with 85 years’ experience in the pharmaceutical sector, operating in 29 countries. The Group conducts research, develops and markets innovative drugs for respiratory treatment, Special Care medicine and rare diseases. The Group’s Research and Development Centre is based in Parma (Italy) and coordinates the activities of 4 other important R&D groups in France, the USA, the UK and Sweden to promote its own pre-clinical, clinical and registration programmes.
The Group employs around 6,000 people. Chiesi is a certified B Corp.
The Davines brand was born in 1983, dedicated to the professional hairdressing market, followed in 1996 by the Comfort Zone cosmetic division.
Davines identifies “Sustainable Beauty” as the aspirational ideal on which the company’s success is built. Initially translated into environmental protection initiatives, this concept has evolved over time to represent the guideline that underlies all business activities.
Summarized in the slogan "Sustainable Beauty", transparency, beauty, respect, and sustainability are values that have become key elements in defining the correct actions inside and outside of the company, but are also transformed into intangible and fundamental ingredients of the product.
Davines is a certified B Corp.
Founded in 1993 by Primo Tortini, Cosmoproject is today the preferential point of reference for the main brands of the cosmetic industry and private labels.The Research&Development Laboratory deals with the creation and design of cutting edge formulas in the fields of skin care, makeup and medical devices. Each project is tested and evaluated in terms of effectiveness, functionality and sensoriality in the brand new Laboratory of Applied Cosmetic, and in terms of safety in the Microbiology Laboratory, which are all in house.
The first-level manufacturing system goes with a global attention paid to quality. A full service from the formulation to the distribution for the utmost customers’ satisfaction.
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Established in 2018, OTTN Projects is a non-profit organization that creates connections between art, culture, and people through contemporary art experiences. This female-run business promotes new formats of operating in the art scene, moved by the creative freedom of our generation. The projects can be divided into two broad categories: projects devoted to artists' support, and projects which focus on bringing art to the public.
OTTN Projects contributes to content creation within the art world through a podcast, a blog, community support and more.
The Studio is born from the natural evolution of the creative process, generated by the union of moreprofessionalism. We explore a wide range of projects: branding, websites, social media, interior-exteriordesign, multimedia and events. Walking with the customer makes us agile and enlightened.Our multidisciplinary experience gives us an excellent understanding of each client, allowing us to expresshis true identity.
Behind our philosophy there is stylistic coherence: respecting the soul of the brand, bringing it to light naturally. This puts us in the unique position of having the competence of every single professional, combined with the great idea that underlies the creative process.
We recognize ourselves in contemporary culture and we aspire to propose a new narrative.