Concretezza dell’essenzialità

Curated by Lóránd Hegyi

Opening: Wednesday 16 February 2022, h 17 - 20

17 February – 29 April 2022

For the fourth exhibition in the series “MY30YEARS - Coherency in Diversity”, art critic and historian Lóránd Hegyi invited artists #mariaelisabettanovello (Vicenza, 1974) and #mattiabosco (Milan, 1976) to present new works, specifically conceived for #galleriafumagalli. “Concretezza dell’essenzialità” offers an interplay between them and an imposing installation by master #janniskounellis (Piraeus, Greece, 1936 - Rome, 2017).

Lóránd Hegyi explains the theme of this exhibition: «One of the most significant elements of the work of art might be its capacity of suggesting some essential experiences. This evocative competence enables it to reveal fundamental, determinant realities which will be specifically concretized and articulated in each singular oeuvre. The concreteness of the singular phenomenon with its sensual qualities and dramaturgical organization transmits the artist’s vision on essentiality. In Jannis Kounellis’ work, the concentration on the very moment of determinant changes and on the transformation of the status of things is based on the radical intensification of material concreteness. Maria Elisabetta Novello is operating with a hyper sensitive, extremely soft and fragile presence of materials which suggests subtle connections between physical and metaphysical levels. Instead of anecdotal descriptions, she is searching for essential realities. In Mattia Bosco’s work, the concreteness of the immediate material realities involves a potential intelligible system which integrates different levels of perception and offers a certain free imaginary. The interpretation of the concreteness originates from a fine synthesis of rationality and emotionality.»

The essentiality – manifested primarily by the elements that constitute the works – is conveyed by the exhibition layout itself: three installations on three walls of the gallery’s main room. While not intending to impose any forced connections between the artists, all the works show a strong presence of the material, yet balanced by the sense of lightness given by the fragmentary characteristic of their elements.

At first glance, the installation by Jannis Kounellis stands out because of its monumental structure made of sixty-three iron scales on which Murano glass blocks are placed. However, the thin metal framework gives a certain lightness to the whole and, by analogy, a musicality evoked by the shape of the scales themselves, similar to the musical triangle. Lightness is also the main feature of Maria Elisabetta Novello's installation. She uses ash: the tangible residue of things and an ancestral symbol of death and rebirth at the same time. As the title of the work “Angolo di riposo” suggests (from the scientific term that describes the maximum angle that a certain amount of granular material can hold to remain stable), the material apparently rests calm, yet unstable. The work of Mattia Bosco completes the essential layout of the exhibition. The raw stone, carefully selected and carved by the artist, is presented fragmented and therefore unstable. As if it were an ancient archeological find disintegrated by time, the work seems to be imbued with a latent tension towards the reconstitution of the whole, albeit destined to eternal immobility.

The program “MY30YEARS - Coherency in Diversity” devised and curated in 2021 by Lóránd Hegyi to pay homage to the thirty-year career of gallery owner #annamariamaggi, continues until 2023 involving 12 artists followed or represented by #galleriafumagalli. For each of the 8 exhibitions, the works of 3 artists coming from different artistic contexts are put in dialogue on specific themes. Avoiding any conceptual imposition, this exhibition program intends to highlight some common trends in contemporary art and to suggest new possible readings.

Biographies

Mattia Bosco was born in Milan in 1976 into a family of painters. He lives and works between Milan and the mountains of the Val d’Ossola, in Piedmont, his own open-air laboratory where he selects his raw materials. Sculptor with a philosophical background, in his work he starts from considering matter as something in which the formal process is already underway: Bosco does not invent new forms and does not proceed through removing, but rather adapts his action to existing conformations. He often favors certain surfaces by smoothing them and inserts mirrored metal bodies. In 2014 #mattiabosco was elected among the finalists of the XV Cairo Prize, and in 2012 he came second ex aequo at the Henraux Foundation Prize. His works have been exhibited in Italian and foreign institutions, such as Palazzo Borromeo, Milan (2019); Ex Cimitero San Pietro in Vincoli, Torino (2018); Dolomiti Contemporanee, Pieve di Cadore (2017) and Casso (2014); Frieze Sculpture Park, London (2015); Museo Diocesano, Milan (2015, 2008); Museum Tinguely, Basel (2015); Camec, La Spezia (2015); Museo del Marmo, Carrara (2014); Triennale, Milan (2013, 2010); Limewharf, London (2013); La Permanente, Milan (2009); Chiesa di S. Stefano, Milan (2007). Since 2019 he has been represented by #galleriafumagalli which held his solo exhibition (along with Filippo Armellin) in the same year. #mattiabosco is included in the fourth and sixth exhibition of the program “MY30YEARS - Coherency in Diversity” curated by Lóránd Hegyi.

Jannis Kounellis was born in Piraeus, Greece in 1936 and moved to Italy in 1956, settling in Rome where he died in 2017. During his studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome, stimulated by the teachings of Toti Scialoja, he approached the experiences of American abstract expressionism and European Informal. In his early works, he conveyed a hermetic and fragmentary writing made up of painted signs and symbols. Wishing to recompose the fragmentary nature of reality, he was operating through the association of industrial and organic materials that often underline the dichotomies inherent to reality. Kounellis took part in the #arte Povera exhibitions (the movement founded by Germano Celant in 1967): his personal participation took a form of expression that oscillates, in a harmonious dialogue, between classical culture and contemporary language, in contrast with the loss of historical and political identity of the second post-war period. In 2019, Prada Foundation in Venice held the largest retrospective after his passing, curated by Germano Celant. Kounellis participated in prestigious international exhibitions such as the Venice Biennale (2015, 2011, 1993, 1988, 1984, 1980, 1978, 1976, 1972), the Sydney Biennale (2008), the Istanbul Biennale (1993), and Documenta in Kassel (1982, 1977, 1972). #galleriafumagalli has long collaborated with him, organizing three exhibitions at the venue (2016, 2009, 2003), the solo shows at the Ex Oratorio di San Lupo in Bergamo (2009) and at the Teatro Margherita in Bari (2010), on the occasion of which the sculpture for Piazza del Ferrarese was made. Kounellis's work was also included in the major exhibition “Visioni” at the Ex Chiesa di Sant’Agostino in Bergamo (2005) curated by #annamariamaggi. In 2021-2023 he is one of the masters selected by Lóránd Hegyi to dialogue with younger artists of the gallery in the program “MY30YEARS - Coherency in Diversity”.

Maria Elisabetta Novello was born in Vicenza in 1974, lives and works in Udine. After studying at the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice, in 1999 she received a scholarship from the Bevilacqua La Masa Foundation. From the very beginning she has experimented with different media such as drawing, installation and performance. Acting as a meticulous contemporary archaeologist, she identifies the tangible signs of the fragility and the passing of the present. She uses ephemeral and impalpable materials such as ash and dust which become the constituent material of her installations or are used as pigments. Sometimes the performative work made during the collection of materials becomes an essential part of the work itself. In addition to the recent solo exhibition at the GNAM in Rome (2020), Novello exhibited her works at the Ex-essiccatoi Bozzoli, San Vito al Tagliamento (2021); Casa Cavazzini, Udine (2020, 2015); Castello di San Vito al Tagliamento (2018); she also took part in the international-renowned exhibitions “Modus - Collateral #event of the 57th Venice Biennale”, Palazzo Ca’ Faccanon, Venice (2017) and “Round the clock - Collateral #event of the 54th Venice Biennale”, Spazio Thetis, Venice (2011). She is the winner of the following prizes: “Premio Fabbri” (2015), “Premio acquisto per la nuova collezione d’arte contemporanea del Credito Cooperativo di Udine”, “Premio Fondazione VAF” (2014), “Blumm Prize” (2013), “Premio Combat” (2012), “Premio Arti Visive San Fedele” (2010), in addition to the aforementioned “Premio Borsista 83°ma Bevilacqua La Masa” (1999). #mariaelisabettanovello has been collaborating with #galleriafumagalli since 2012. Lóránd Hegyi includes her oeuvre in the fourth and seventh exhibition of the program “MY30YEARS - Coherency in Diversity” (2021-2023).

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