On the occasion of the 900th anniversary of the history of the free Municipality of Arezzo and the millennium of Guido Monaco's birth, we had the precious opportunity to place some of Andrea Roggi's most ingenious sculptures in the exquisite Sala del Sottochiesa of S. Francesco in Arezzo, exceptionally granted by the Soprintendenza ai Beni A.A. of Arezzo. This important artistic and creative event was dedicated to contemporary art in the land of Arezzo.

The exhibition, organised with the patronage and contribution of the Municipality and the Province of Arezzo, was inaugurated by the Director and the Municipality's Culture Department on Thursday, 22 October 1998. It was on that very occasion that we encouraged Andrea in his extraordinary work of modelling in clay the face depicting the 'great Roberto', a fellow countryman of Manciano; Andrea's Michelangelo-esque genius was already planning the creation of a large bronze statue to be placed in his town! On the occasion of the solemn celebrations for the important anniversary, the Municipality of Arezzo had invited Roberto Benigni on several occasions, but at that time the well-known actor was on a long tour in the United States to promote his film 'LA VITA E' BELLA'.

But in the meantime, Benigni's head, a sculptural work by Andrea Roggi, had conquered the headlines on local television and in the newspapers, but above all the people's sympathy... Andrea's perseverance and indomitable character achieved their first successes! From his skill came the first sketches of the statue and the numerous plaster casts... Meanwhile, Roberto won the Oscar, the smile and the sympathy of the whole world; finally, in the first days of May '99, the formidable bronze statue dedicated to Roberto Benigni came to light from the crucible of a well-known local artistic foundry.