After dedicating the Tree of Peace to Florence in memory of the victims of the Via dei Georgofili bombing, Andrea Roggi returns to the Tuscan capital with a new solo exhibition. From May 10 to August 8, 2025, the Basilica of San Lorenzo Complex will host Humanitas | The Power of Love, an exploration of Roggi’s distinctive artistic language in dialogue with the historical and spiritual atmosphere of the site.
Renowned for their unmistakable style and expressive force, Roggi’s monumental bronze sculptures – exhibited in cities across Europe and beyond – stand out for their originality and symbolic depth. His figures, often caught in tender, dynamic embraces – as seen in Per Sempre Tu and Un Amore senza Tempo – evoke both strength and grace. Taking the form of tree trunks, their arms reach toward the sky, transforming into olive branches with golden leaves that radiate a sense of vitality. Their roots are frequently embedded in a globe, symbolizing a profound and unbreakable connection with nature. These recurring Tree of Life forms – long a central theme in Roggi’s work – express the fusion of matter and spirit, a celebration of vital energy. Thanks to the artist’s patented dynamic casting technique, these sculptures seem to defy gravity, creating striking balances that engage deeply with the surrounding space.
Curated by art historian Laura Speranza, Humanitas | The Power of Love retraces key moments of Roggi’s career through nine seminal works, starting with Atman, his first anthropomorphic bronze sculpture, created in the 1980s in his early twenties using the traditional lost-wax casting method. Installed in the basilica’s small cloister, Atman sets the stage for a journey that culminates with l’Energia della Conoscenza, a brand-new work conceived specifically for this exhibition. In his most recent sculptures, Roggi combines traditional casting techniques with micro-casting and dynamic casting, producing richly textured surfaces that testify to a continuous evolution in his artistic research. Four large bronzes will be displayed in the open-air space of the unfinished façade and side elevation of Brunelleschi’s basilica, their warm sandstone tones offering a powerful backdrop to the works. 
In the large cloister to the left of the church, four more sculptures will enter into conversation with the rational geometry of Renaissance architecture. Framed by lush greenery and a central orange tree, this serene space becomes a natural stage for Roggi’s poetic vision. The tree motif, a central symbol in Roggi’s work, represents life and connection and often appears as olive or cypress – icons of the Tuscan landscape –evoking the visual language of masters from Fra Angelico and Leonardo to Paolo Uccello, Ottone Rosai, and Ardengo Soffici.