La città nuova - The new city: an exhibition at Villa Olmo, Como.

all the images in this review are taken from the official website of the exhibition http://www.lacittanuova.it/opere.asp 

It is with great pleasure that I can write a review of an exhibition organized by my beloved Como. Today I will talk about "La Città Nuova" (trans. The New City) in Villa Olmo.

Thinking (and taking care) of our cities, today, should be more diffuse in Italy. We "remember" about our cities only when we are complaining. We should push a dialogue on our spaces, instead, in an active way. Complaining is just waste of energy, if a proposal is not following.

These days, more than in the past years, we do need to go "civic" again. 

The exhibition at Villa Olmo remembers us that many architects, in the past, reasoned on our cities, trying to understand them and making proposals for fixing the issues. Some views became realities, other remained utopias, but people were talking about them. 

The route room after room gives us a good background of what were the problems, the visions, the dreams and the failures during the last century. Each step of the exhibition creates a clear base from which we could start again to talk about our cities.

The path is easy to follow, even by non-experts. The first room is dedicated to Antonio Sant'Elia, who died at 28 in the WWI. His perspectives are so precise that it is possible to draw their plans, even if he never did them. His ideas were futuristic for the early XX century, but seen today, they totally make sense. Then we have drawings for Fritz Lang's Metropolis and other utopias, compared to the real city. 

The other rooms are dedicated to Le Corbusier's Plan Voisin, then Frank Lloyd Wright's Living City, with a big original maquette from the Vitra Museum.

The quality of each piece is absolutely high, with models on loan from the biggest foundation all over the world.

One big room, in the gorgeous Villa Olmo, guest the ideas that spread out in the mid XX century, with Archizoom Associates and Superstudio. Those are the most difficult projects to follow, for their highly theoretical content. My lecture is that they tried to reason, in a critic way, on the failure of certain visions, becoming aware of the entropy that, in fact, lead the cities to be as they are even now (that is: very far from tidy projects and clean maquettes, as previously hoped). 

I think that projects like Continuous Monument (Monumento Continuo) should be intended as the research of connections in a vast way, across countries and over oceans. That happens today, not in a physical way but virtual, with the Internet.

And that is also the theme of the following room, with Cao Fei and her virtual city built on Second Life. Very interesting project guested in the nice little theater of the Villa. 

Last but not least, Pizza City  is a huge maquette created by Chris Burden. Another good point on wich we should stop and start thinking about where we are and were we are going. 

In this review I tried to explain the path you'll find there, but the exhibition guest many more artists and the spaces of the Villa, with such a set up, is really worth visiting in person.

You now have time up to July 14th, 2013 to see those visions and make up your minds about what city would you like to live in. 

Antonio Sant'Elia - La centrale elettrica

 http://www.lacittanuova.it/opere.asp 

Erich Kettelhut for Metropolis

 http://www.lacittanuova.it/opere.asp 

Living City, 1959, Frank Lloyd Wright

 http://www.lacittanuova.it/opere.asp 

Archizoom Associati

 http://www.lacittanuova.it/opere.asp 

Superstudio - Monumento Continuo, 1971

 http://www.lacittanuova.it/opere.asp 

Cao Fei - RMB CITY: A Second Life City Planning, 2007

 http://www.lacittanuova.it/opere.asp 

Chris Burden, Pizza City, enormous maquette (1991-1996)

 http://www.lacittanuova.it/opere.asp 

Milan Updates #2

<< L'arte rinnova i popoli e ne rivela la vita >>. Philippe Daverio ce la insegna (l'Arte)

http://www.rosalio.it/wp-images/fotoblog/164.jpg

<< Art renews populations, and can disclose their lives >>

This the translation for the quote appearing on the Teatro Massimo Vittorio Emanuele in Palermo, Sicily. Given this task for Art, we now need Philippe Daverio to explain Art to us.

Philippe Daverio is, according to a definition by himself, a jacobin rebel of culture and art, deeply convinced that each population is the product of their own cultural and historical heritage. He is a great lover of Italy, plus being a mix of France, Germany and Italy. Having studied art, history, economics and politics for all his life, he is now in a position of understanding even a complex country like Italy. And he can explain to us Italian why we are as we are.

The easiest definition for him, by the way, is as follows: he is into Art. 

And this should be really intended in a physical way, because he IS indeed INTO Art. He has the ability to see it, understand it as no one else, and then share it with the masses. He is a collector, a show-man, an art merchant, an historian. He is a man of the Renaissance, and every time I listen to him or watch his tv show PasspARTtout I get more and more convinced that we can still give to us Italians another chance. At least from a cultural point of view. Even today.

Last week there was a conference, quite private let's say, in a Milanese school. He talked of Italy and of the current political, social and cultural situation. Take notes during his lectures is rather difficult, because you find yourself in a cultural hurricane of quotes, book, movies, facts. I did my best, totally captured by his charming and funny voice and his brilliance. 

I would like to share with you the most important lesson I learned from the lecture: we Italians need to renew our approach to our artistic heritage.
We must understand it and get convinced that the solution to our current problems is in our roots. We are a mix of populations, that invaded Italy during the centuries and made us so special and different, from mile to mile. Daverio made a comparison between cultura and coltura, that's culture and cultivation. Culture should be cultivated and then harvested, as we do for produce. Of course, cultivating culture in Italy, right now, is really difficult. The dryness of our Institutions and of the majority of people makes it a loosing investment, from the beginning. Indeed, that's the only solution for us. Daverio cannot stand the idea that, in a future, Italy will merely be a cultural amusement park. He would rather destroy everything, instead of seeing us frosted in our artistic heritage, simply getting money from the tourists. 

We do need to cultivate our heritage and keep producing new pieces, to make us again a creative country. 

Thus, he talked about some possible approaches to the cultivation, analyzing approaches from the Illuminism and from the Romanticism. 

<< Art renews populations >> but then we have to give an address to the culture. The Illuminism brought up ideas such as << we will give them not what they want, but what they need >>. Very dangerous approach than led also to Nazism.

Romanticism gave us the idea that << the Man is a god while he is dreaming, but just a miserable when he think about that >> (Friedrich Hölderlin). A partial solution again not correct, since the Man that would stop thinking (to dream) will rarely get good results. 

The solution is going back to the idea of society by Carl Marx, that was intended as family + religion + culture. What we need now is understand our cultural roots: preserving them and then let them flourish again, bringing new life, new culture.

After the terrible mistakes of the Nazism, when culture was used to twist the population and diffuse wrong ideas, institutions like the "Department of Cultural Heritage" have been always seen as a delicate matter, not to be given that much power. But we do need to empower that, giving it a relevant position in our Government, avoiding cuts and creating a Department able to guide an harvesting of our heritage. Finding new thoughts, new arts, new ways to make it worth-preserving: that is up to us. We cannot just leave it there, for the next tourists. We can solve a lot of problems now, by looking back and understanding our history.

Daverio is optimistic because he knows that we are a weird country, but we do know how to metabolize our cultural heritage. We have always found a way to include the old in the new construction. 

E.g Ponte Vecchio ("old bridge") in Florence: instead of being demolished, was enriched with new functions and increments (Vasari, 1565). Paris destroyed a bridge and made the one that is now called Pont Neuf ("new bridge", 1578).

In the recent years, this task of metabolization is getting more difficult and the results less convincing even in Italy. But it's the time to do that again. 

Because we are the Country of the Ponte Vecchio, that thinks of the future.

Milan Updates #1

Photo taken at Zara in Corso Vittorio Emanuele, Milano.
It's a piece made out of plastic, material supposed to live "forever" in the environment.
This could be a problem, when plastic is left as garbage everywhere.
But could be better used to create a piece of art that could live "forever" also in our culture.

Curated by galleria Rossana Orlandi
Installation by Hagar Fletcher 

Associated Artists of Pittsburgh goes 102th!

There is something special at the Carnegie Museum of Art, that makes it one of the most interesting museums in what I call the 1.5-hours-NYC-fly-zone. I am pointing this out because I do believe that the quality of the CMOA equalizes the one of the most popular museums in the Big Apple.

Coming from Europe and from Italy, I was pretty satisfied with my experience of art and museums (even if barely bearing the fact that France "stole" a lot of pieces from us, but that's History).

Indeed, I was pleasantly surprised to see that the CMOA in Pittsburgh guests some great pieces from each artistic style or era. For sure the most popular pieces are elsewhere in Europe or in the US, but I can assure you'll learn more about any art style and tendency in Pittsburgh than in Paris.

An example above all: the great collection of Impressionists, in Pittsburgh, is absolutely amazing, a true treasure.

But apart from the high level of the CMOA collections, the thing that makes it special is the great ability to always include contemporary art that learns from the past. Because that is the proper use of any artistic or historic heritage: learning from that.

Pittsburgh has a long tradition in innovation. The artists that were selected for the 102nd exhibition (yes, that is 102!) of Associated Artists of Pittsburgh show that they studied the past and carefully watched around themselves. Then they applied their skills to create something absolutely contemporary, meaningful, interesting.

image from the CMOA website. Original caption says:

Erika Osborne, Homage to Converse Basin, charcoal on grape stakes, Courtesy of the artist

Interesting, in this exhibition, is the way each artist interpreted a theme, in my opinion, and an era. From room to room, you can see pieces that dialogue with the past, but talking about today. There could be a reminiscence of the past in the aesthetic or technique, but then the matter is "our". 

During my visit, I loved in particular some sculptures that were displayed. They were really "making a space" in the space of the museum. 

But I also loved a video, about Andy Warhol, that to me seems so in the right place, in the right moment, in the right format. It's all about Andy and our daily "pop art", that is coming directly from Mr Warhol. It really looks like a gorgeous cultural loop, in which all the pieces are getting together, from Andy, to Andy.

Among the displayed paintings, most of them kind of abstract, I choose one, in particular that was very meaningful to me. A Chinese grand fest, with the same dignity of the most famous nature morte from the Renaissance. But it speaks Chinese, of course.

The pieces I selected are just a "brush stroke" on the big canvas of the AAP. So please, go in person to verify my assumptions.

(I added a link to each original website for each image. See descriptions)

• MADELYN ROEHRIG - FIGMENTS: ANDY'S TOMBSTONE 

         EDITION II April 2011 - December 2012

screenshot of the NPR website, where you can hear the story of Madelyn project:

http://www.npr.org/2012/08/06/157776348/in-warhols-memory-soup-cans-and-coke-bottles

listen to the 4 minutes interview with the author! 

  

• WADE KRAMM - COLLAPSIBLE CHAIR

image above from the artist's website:          

http://www.wadekramm.net/#!collapsible-chair/cvd0

• PENNY MATEER - You Better Think THINK Think about...

          #9 Protest Series, 2012, Fiber, 56" x 72"

image above from the artist website:

http://pennymateer.com/artwork/2525192_You_Better_Think_THINK_Think_about_9.html

• DIANE WHITE - GRAND FEST

above: screenshot from the website 

http://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/Pittsburgh-Magazine/May-2013/Best-of-Culture-May/

• ATTICUS ADAMS 

above screenshot from the artist website http://www.atticusadams.com/portfolio/waccamaw-neck/ is not about the piece displayed at the AAP, but it is created with a similar technique: aluminum net and gesso.  Original description says:

Dimensions: 62”x38”x29”
Materials: Aluminum mesh, gesso, spray enamel, grommets
Weight: 5lbs
Year: 2012

This sculpture was created from flat sheets of aluminum mesh that were molded by hand with a simple wooden tool. The individual sections were then joined together by hand twisting the fringed edges. The coat of gesso was sealed with spray enamel. This work can be hung from the ceiling or from the wall

Andy's Time Capsules: OUT OF THE BOX @ Andy Warhol Museum

Quoting the motto of a famous storage company: Get . More . When . You . Store !

(quote above from the official Time Capsule website - see link below)

Andy Warhol perfectly knew how to create value through his work. Indeed, this boxes he started filling since 1974 where first meant to be merely storage of Andy's stuff, during the relocations he went through. 

The boxes were filled with many objects, letters, invitations to events, books, but also receipts, tax forms, legal papers, bills. Anything that could fit in the box was ready to be stored.

Lately, Andy thought to sell them. According to the TC21 project website, he was thinking of selling them closed, with just a picture on them, the content to be discovered by the client only after the purchase. 

All those boxes were never sold and remained closed for years. In 2007, the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh started a program of cataloguing for each box. It's a six-years founded project that will end soon, considering that almost all the boxes have been opened and archived. 

A skilled team is working on them with care and dedication. Even the most little piece found in the boxes is catalogued according to one of the 22 categories created for this project. There is no "miscellaneous" and it was difficult, in some cases, find the right category for certain stuff. There is also a category called "mother". 

The Museum has recently started opening them in public, finding with the attendees what Andy stored in the picked box. It's the Out of the Box event. The first time capsule public opening was in December 2012. On May, 10th 2013 I was able to attend another live opening, at the theater of the museum. The next ones will be in July 2013 and September 2013.

During the event, the three girls working on the project, opened a box for us. A cam was recording from above. On a screen we could see, projected, what was inside the box, discovering little by little the content. 

The team explained us the way they work, the process of cataloguing and some funny stories about their job. This job, that is for sure interesting and could be hilarious, is also very important for the Andy Warhol foundation. It allows the tracking of Andy's masterpieces, exhibitions, donations etc. Cataloguing each piece is a very delicate task. The girls are constantly in touch with other members of the projects, who help them in understanding the meaning of creation pieces. In some cases, foreign  languages or "missing links" make the job very tough. It takes a lot of general knowledge, pop culture and a little or craziness to understand certain connections.

During the last opening, we found good pieces from Andy. A part from mail and invitations, our box (from 1978) contained:

Original McDonald's paper bags, for take-away meals. Used.

Covers for the High Times zine, to be evaluated by Andy, and then the printed number, with the chosen cover, and a piece on Andy Warhol.

• A cook book titled: Palette to Palate

• Armand Schaubroeck Steals ‎– Ratfucker (record never opened by Andy, but opened live for us)

• A letter sent by "Professor Plum"

• Tax Files

• Postcards from Egypt and Japan

• a low quality cigar, never smoked

• "Bibles Stories" by William Anthony ("I can't wait for the New Testament. This is the first Bible I could understand."—Andy Warhol)

• a card saying: Flowers are Sex Organs

• a telegram regarding a recommendation to meet with Mick Jagger

• a copy of the book "Delirious New York" by Rem Koolhaas, clearly never read (but highly recommended by myself)

The event was very professionally held, interesting and appealing. It's a nice balance of seriousness (the process and cataloguing) and hilarious (the content).

I also recommend you to visit the blog of the project http://www.warhol.org/connect/blogs/tc/ and the official website of the project http://www.warhol.org/TC21/main.html where you'll be able to see the content of the boxes and learn more about this.

And if you'll be here in May or September, don't miss the next opening! Only few boxes to go…

Andy Thomas

http://andythomas.com/

Photos taken on Walnut Street (Pittsburgh, PA) at the Maser Galleries

www.masergalleries.com

Learning from New York

The Flat Iron Building, and surroundings. 

Fiber Art International 2013 - the discovery of the discovery

Today I visited, for the first time and without really planning it, the Society for Contemporary Crafts. I knew there was an exhibition, but what I saw left me totally amazed. From the official website: http://fiberartspgh.org/guild/node/10:

"Fiberart International 2013 is the 21st in a series of triennial juried exhibitions sponsored by the Fiberarts Guild of Pittsburgh, Inc. Chosen by a distinguished panel of artists and curators, Fiberart International 2013 will feature works by established and emerging artists and will provide a unique opportunity to see current trends and innovations in this constantly evolving medium."

I almost felt honored to be able to see that. The pieces are incredibly well done and appealing, in their composition, technique and final result. Each piece, wisely selected by the jury, was the proof of very creative brains linked to astonishingly expert hands.

While visiting the space, I was really considering that the most pleasant part of the visit was the discovery of the detail. From far, the compositions were fine, but then, once got closer, the artesanal skills were emerging very clearly.

I usually say that the biggest difference I see between Italy and the US is the density. In Italy, while walking in any city, you can really see the stratification of time everywhere. Houses, streets, gardens: everything is the result of compromises between little available space and strong needs. History shows you overlaid solutions, often resulted from changes of mind. The result, to me, is a kind of magic "fabric", zooming in which you can read another "fabric in the fabric". It's like a big loop of fibers, a never-ending discovery of new details and compositions.

On the contrary, in the US I can see everything clearly, let's say. Everything is displayed in a very impactive way: big, wide, tall, strong. I am still thinking of the cities, for example. What I see, with Italian eyes, seems pretty diluted, in the vastness of the American space.

Pittsburgh still keeps some interesting stratifications, in some parts. I think it depends on the fact that for many years it was almost frosted in the economical crisis. Once people came back, they found big pieces of the past, and started dealing with those, managing to integrate old and new according to their needs.

The complexity of the US in evident when you zoom out. The complexity of Europe and Italy is when you zoom in.

The point here is: contemporary art or the contemporary design is pretty much clean and simplified. Let's just think of the most common objects: I-Phones, I-Pads, trendy ads and websites: there is a tendency in cleaning, whitening, removing, simplifying and smoothing. (Tendency that, I must admit, is not applied to the American food, but this is not a blog about food).

eg. "clean" design

eg. over-enriched food: even the Sushi, in the US, is overloaded with tastes.

This popular inclination to simplify is making everything accessible and easy to use, global and international. Despite the clear perks of such strategies, the danger is to loose our sensitivity and our ability to discern the shades of the world surrounding us. This is a big danger, in my opinion, with the risk of killing creativity.

The satisfaction of seeing an exhibition such the Fiberart International comes from the discovery. I would say: the discovery of the discovery. The aesthetics are pretty modern and contemporary. Bright colors that could come from the latest printers, or designed with the most popular graphic softwares.

The reality is that, once to look closer, you suddenly step back centuries and you can see the human gesture. It is the discovery of the fiber, indeed, and of the artesanal quality of each stitch - in the greatest part of the pieces.

I now let you evaluate by yourself from the photos I took.

But remember that a photo can never substitute a visit in person. If you have the chance, go and (don't) touch with your hand the pleasure of the discovery.

the work of an Argentine artist

rolled papers, patiently clipped together and finely composed.

Hairy rug or undersea world. You choose. 

Tiny embroidery that creates flowers over flowers over flowers...

a curtain that mixes plastics and threads. And colors

like a Mirò, but it is all sewed

A groundhog by an Italian Artist

This last piece is one of my favorite, by a Japanese artist. I was absolutely convinced it was a precious wood. It is wool and silk and other fabrics mixed together.