The largest existing labyrinth is called Labirinto della Masone . It is located in Fontanellato, in the heart of the Parma countryside, and is made entirely of bamboo plants. Born from the encounter between the publisher and art collector Franco Maria Ricci and the Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges , the Masone labyrinth is a fascinating labyrinth in which to get lost, to fantasize and reflect.
The labyrinth is a path of the soul, a loss to find oneself. Today the idea of ​​getting lost generates fear and anguish. The path inside my labyrinth should instead serve to rediscover serenity, silence, oneself
Franco Maria Ricci
Suspended between art, books, starred dishes and music, the Labyrinth extends over eight hectares of land and houses a starred restaurant, curated by Chef Massimo Spigaroli, and a very rich library dedicated to the most illustrious examples of typography and graphics. The interview with the creator of the Labyrinth of Masone
Ma to lead us into the largest maze in the world is the voice of Franco Maria Ricci, the Minos who created this fascinating place, enchanting thousands of visitors from all over the world. How did your first encounter with the labyrinth happen?
I arrived at the Labyrinth following a path – like labyrinths – unpredictable and tortuous, dictated by circumstances, by certain encounters, by certain fantasies. Two experiences, one in childhood and one in youth, marked my first encounters with labyrinths. When I was a child, from time to time gypsies and gypsies with long colored skirts came to Parma with their booths (they called them that) and installed a labyrinth of opposing mirrors, which filled me with wonder. And, as it grew, how it returned to her imagination
In the second year of university, while I was attending the Faculty of Geology, on weekends and summer holidays I ventured into the dark bowels of the earth, discovering underground labyrinths. When I was a little older, the mazes came out of my life. If at a certain point, much later, those laborious paths re-emerged as if from a sort of oblivion and began to attract my attention, it was, first for the reading, then for the meeting and friendship with Borges. How meeting Borges changed his life
On several occasions Borges was my guest in Fontanellato and in Milan. I told him, one of those days, that I would like, sooner or later, to build a labyrinth; I added, sinning a little pride, that he would be the greatest in the world. Borges objected that the largest labyrinth in the world already existed, and it was the desert. One thing seemed certain from then on: I would never have been able to build one of those infinite, or almost infinite, labyrinths that Borges had described in certain tales of Fiction or of L’Aleph. At the center of his labyrinth, there is a kitchen, but there are also books, music and art. Great writers and artists have passed. Who dreams of hosting in the center of his park
I would have always liked to have hosted a dear friend at my labyrinth, with whom we have talked about labyrinths many times and who is no longer there today; he didn’t have time, therefore, to see my labyrinth finished. This is Umberto Eco, with whom I shared some beautiful projects of the past. We have both always been fascinated by History and Symbols, so in 2020, which will be the year of the Capital of Culture for Parma, I would like to dedicate many activities, to his person, to his “labyrinths”, to his talent. Because he chose to use the bamboo plant in the construction of the park
In Italy bamboo is little known and little used and it is a shame because it is a fantastic plant, which has no diseases, does not shed in winter, purifies the air from carbon dioxide and does not cause disasters in the event of typhoons or tornadoes; moreover, its elegance is no less classic and flawless than that of Bodoni’s characters.
Among the advantages there was one linked to my age: bamboo has a very fast growth, while that of boxwood, the traditional plant of labyrinths, is rather slow. With bamboo I could have a reasonable hope of seeing the plants in my labyrinth reach the right height.
