FontanaArte. House of Glass Glimmers at Le Stanze del Vetro in Venice

Illuminated Mirror by Max Ingrand (1955) - Photo: Cat Bauer

(Venice, Italy) Designs from legendary FontanaArte in Milan, the company that elevated industrial plate glass to coveted home decor in the 20th century, are the focus of the spring exhibition at Le Stanze del Vetro (Rooms of Glass) on the Island of San Giorgio Maggiore.

It is Italian design at its finest.

 

Christian Larsen, the curator who joins us here in Venice from the United States by way of such institutions as Museum of Arts & Design and the Metropolitan Museum in New York, said he was grateful for the "great opportunity" -- that it was difficult to have the final result match the curator's original vision, and that this exhibition was "the best experience in his entire career." 

Curator Christian Larsen - Photo: Cat Bauer

In 1881, Luigi Fontana founded Luigi Fontana & Co. in Milan to manufacture float glass -- a sheet of glass made by floating molten glass on a bed of molten metal -- for the construction industry. The company had a pavilion at the 1906 Milan International Fair where the public embraced its Art Nouveau style.  

 

Luigi Fontana first collaborated with celebrated starchitect Gio Ponti at the 1930 Monza Biennale of modern decorative and industrial arts (Ponti would go on to design masterpieces like the 32-storey Perilli Tower skyscraper in Milan built in 1958). Ponti's artistic vision merged with Fontana's industrial glass and FontanaArte was born.

 

The exhibition focuses on the poetic possibilities of plate glass from the time of the company's foundation by Ponti in 1932 through 1996 when Gae Aulenti, one of the few women designing in postwar Italy, was the artistic director. Each director attracted other singular designers to the company. On show are 85 of the most exceptional pieces produced by FontanaArte. 

 

'Teso' Bookcase by Renzo Piano (1987) - Photo: Cat Bauer

Christian Larsen takes us on a journey through the Rooms of Glass with an overview of the creative production periods of FontanaArte's four great artistic directors:

• Gio Ponti: 1932-1933
• Pietro Chiesa: 1933-1948
• Max Ingrand: 1954-1967
• Gae Aulenti: 1979-1996

FontanaArte set the standards of Italian design by elevating the everyday object to the art of living. The exhibition kicks off with black and white excerpts from newsreels of industrial glass production in the 1930s when FontanaArte was in its infancy. It's fascinating to watch the early mechanical process with a human touch that resulted in the creation of plate glass. Larsen believes that when consumers understand the way that things are made, we will be a smarter consumers.

From there, the installation is laid out with each gallery focusing on the designs created under each artistic director, climaxing with a grand suite furnished to evoke a dwelling made of glass interiors with staging by architect Massimiliano Locatelli. 

"A secret material, difficult to work with, but so noble and precious, glass seems to be the ideal complement to light, in which it plays by transmitting, by reflecting. It's a perfect combination."
                                                                ---Max Ingrand

 
My favorite artistic director was Max Ingrand, whose designs had a touch of the spiritual added to their functionality. I absolutely loved his 1955 mirror embellished with cut crystals that catch the light and sparkle like diamonds, making whoever gazes at their own reflection more beautiful.

Grand Chandelier by Max Ingrand (1958) Photo courtesy of Le Stanze del Vetro

Ingrand's Grand Chandelier was made for the 1958 Brussels World's Fair, and was one of the most complex and impressive of any work ever produced by FontanaArte. According to the exhibition, "With 32 bulbs housed in its brass and bronze structure, the cut crystal plates radiate light from the central core with the complexity of an intricately cut diamond."

The exhibition culminates in a 'house of glass,' a suite of galleries meant to evoke a domestic space furnished only with objects by FontanaArte. Massimiliano Locatelli's layout uses mirrors and glass to let us see through and across space, or get tangled up in reflections.

From the press release:

The house of glass has long been a dream of ideal architecture, since King Solomon's palace in the Bible, through to the technological solutions offered by modernist architects such as Taut, Careau, Mies van der Rohe, Johnson, Bo Bardi, and Frey. But it was the avant-garde vision of Luigi Fontana and Gio Ponti to reinvent industrial glass from an exterior construction material to a new luxurious standard for furnishing the interior of the home. To live not just encased in glass, but to live with glass.

FontanaArte. House of Glass curated by Christian Laresen is at Le Stanze del Vetro on the Island of San Giorgio Maggiore from April 4 to July 31, 2022. Go to Le Stanze del Vetro for more information.

Ciao from Venezia,
Cat Bauer
Venetian Cat - The Venice Blog

Nearly a Century of Memories: Sabine Weiss, Pioneer Female Photographer Shines at the Loveliest Exhibition Space in Venice, Casa dei Tre Oci

Palazzo Ducale - 1950. Venezia, Italia © Sabine Weiss

(Venice, Italy) Sabine Weiss died last year on December 28th at the age of 97, as the tumultuous year of 2021 cranked to a close. Till the very end, she helped to bring her current exhibition at Casa dei Tre Oci here in Venice alive. Sabine Weiss. La poesia dell'istante celebrates her life-long devotion to photography. Through her images, we are privileged to witness nearly a century of human life caught on camera. What a great way to go!

"To be powerful, a photograph must speak to us about an aspect of the human condition, make us feel the emotion that the photographer felt in the presence of her subject."

                                                                        ---Sabine Weiss

1950. Porte de Saint-Cloud, Parigi, Francia © Sabine Weiss

Sabine Weiss was born Sabine Weber in Saint-Gingolph, Switzerland on July 23, 1924, and took her first photos at the age of 11. Her father was a chemist and inventor, and encouraged the young Sabine to pursue her passion to capture human emotion with her lens, even though she was a girl. After her studies in the prestigious Boissonnas studio in Geneva, in 1945 she produced her first news story featuring American soldiers on leave, which was immediately published in a Swiss newspaper.

 

Hugh & Sabine, Hotel de Nice, Paris, 1949

Emboldened by the fruits of her talent, Sabine journeyed off to Paris and presented herself to the German fashion and portrait photographer, Willy Maywald, who employed her as an assistant for four years and opened the doors to Parisian social circles. In 1949 she met her great love, the American artist Hugh Weiss, who became her husband and creative partner in life and work.

"Whether she is photographing a dress by Dior or a gang of kids, what is important for her is the struggle with and the control of all the elements in her picture."
                                                            ---Hugh Weiss

1958. Yves Saint-Laurent, prima collezione Dior, for Life © Sabine Weiss

Throughout the years, Sabine photographed everything from the extreme post-war living conditions in Paris, to cigarettes and babies and perfume. Her documentation of the human condition earned her a reputation as a humanist photojournalist, but she was just as comfortable snapping fashion, advertisements and portraits of celebrities -- she didn't like being put into a category. "I could photograph different worlds with very different people -- wealthy people in the morning, outcasts in the afternoon." 

As a pioneer female photographer in a field dominated by men, Sabine always kept her sense of humor even while documenting the darker side of humanity. She worked in every photographic genre, from reportage to artists' portraits to fashion to street photography. The images she captured of the faces of children are riveting. Of all the photographs that she took, the one that haunted me the most was one she took in Paris in 1953 of young children chained to a barge.

 

Children chained to a barge, Paris, France 1953 by Sabine Weiss - Photo: Cat Bauer

 

Last year, Nicolas Berggruen, the US-based, Paris-born billionaire investor and philanthropist made headlines when he signed an agreement to purchase the Casa dei Tre Oci on the island of Giudecca from the Fondazione di Venezia and turn it into the headquarters for his cultural thinktank, the Berggruen Institute. Berggruen has dual US and German citizenship, and is the son of Heinz Berggruen, the late German art dealer and collector whose funeral in 2007 was attended by both Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Horst Kohler.

 

A couple days ago, Nicolas Berggruen hit the news again when it was announced that he had bought another important property here in Venice, Palazzo Diedo, this time in the Cannaregio district. The property is set to be transformed into an exhibition venue and artist-in-residence space as part of the new Berggruen Arts & Culture, kicked-off with an installation by American artist Sterling Ruby. 

 

In the catalog of Sabine Weiss. La Poesia Dell'Istante, Nicolas Berggruen states: 

"As an institution whose goal is to develop ideas centered on the great transformations of the human condition brought about by changes in the economics of technology and politics, we are very pleased that Sabine Weiss's work is being celebrated at Casa dei Tre Oci.... It is our hope that the exhibition will draw wider attention to her way at looking for the spark in humanity."

Venice Through the Window of Casa dei Tre Oci - Photo: Cat Bauer

Sabine Weiss, The Poetry of the Instant, La Poesia Dell'Istante runs at the Casa dei Tre Oci through October 23, 2022. Curated by Virginie Chardin, the retrospective is sponsored by the Fondazione di Venezia, realized by Marsilio Arte in collaboration with the Berggruen Institute, and produced by the Sabine Weiss atelier Laure Delloye-Augustins, with the support of the Jeu de Paume and the International Festival Les Rencontres de la Photographie d'Arles under the high patronage of the Switzerland Consulate General in Milan. Go to Tre Oci for more information.

Ciao from Venezia,
Cat Bauer
Venetian Cat - The Venice Blog

The Venice Carnival and a Brief History of Masks

Il Ridotto (The Foyer) by Francesco Guardi (1755)

(Venice, Italy) A sleek, black gondola glides up the Grand Canal and docks in front of a 15th century Gothic palace blazing with candles. A masked nobleman wearing a tricorn hat steps out and offers his hand to his companion, also masked, draped in gold finery. The couple strides through space and time into a sumptuous world that once existed, and, if you step through the right portal, still exists in Venice today. 

In a city where there seems to be a mask shop on every corner, it may be surprising to learn that the ancient Venetian craft of mask making was only revived about forty years ago. During the political terrorism of the Years of Lead starting in the late 60s, the wearing of masks was discouraged, and Carnival limited to schoolchildren and private celebrations.

Mask making in Venice can be documented back to the 13th century, though it probably existed much earlier. On April 10, 1436, the ancient profession of mascareri was founded under the jurisdiction of the Painter's Guild. Over the years, masks were used for a variety of reasons -- in the government, the theater, and as a means of disguise. Masks provided the Venetians a degree of anonymity.

As far back as the 11th century, the mattaccino costume was worn by mischievous young men, who, dressed as clowns, would bombard noblewomen with eggs filled with rosewater, inspiring the first official documentation regarding masks: a 1268 law prohibiting the throwing of eggs while disguised. The Venetian government apparently gave up trying to enforce it, however, and resorted to putting up nets along the Procuratie in St. Mark's Square to protect the ladies and their rich clothing.

Venice Carnival 2022 - Photo: Cat Bauer

The wearing of a mask put everyone on the same level: rich and poor, nobleman and citizen, beautiful and ordinary, old and young. It permitted confidences to be exchanged anonymously -- everything from accusations before State Inquisitors, to a potpourri of sexual indiscretions. Prostitutes practiced their trade without fear of retribution; homosexuals hid their illicit lifestyle. In 1458, it was decreed that men were forbidden to dress up as women and enter convents to commit indecent acts.

Over the years, Carnival festivities grew more decadent until it evolved into a 250-day event of non-stop parties, gambling and dancing. Social and class distinctions were flipped on their heads, with servants dressing up as masters and vice versa. It was difficult to distinguish a housewife wearing a traditional mask, cape, hood and three corner hat from a nobleman dressed in the same outfit, allowing both to move freely though the city without fear of recognition.

Not all masks were used for indelicacies, however. The bauta was worn by both men and women, and was not considered a costume but a form of dress -- required wearing if a woman wanted to go to the theater. 

Teatro San Cassiano, the world's first public opera house, opened in Venice with Andromeda by Francesco Manelli during Carnival 1637. It was such a hit that more theaters were built. During the theater boom of the 17th century, Venetians spontaneously started wearing masks in public, until over the decades it became a natural way of life. 

Another ingredient in this colorful mix was the Italian theater, Commedia dell'arte. In the 18th century, the renowned Venetian playwright, Carlo Goldoni, enthralled Venice with his delightfully decadent masked characters. Pantalone, Harlequin, Colombina and Pulcinella were among the many masks that found their way into the Carnival.

Masks disappeared, along with Carnival, when Napoleon's troops brought an end to the Venetian Republic in 1797. Since then, they've resurfaced and submerged again throughout the decades until being vanquished to the pages of the history books by the 20th century.

And then masks staged a spectacular comeback in the late 1970s and early 1980s when a group of young people brought them once again into the forefront. After that authentic relaunching of the Venice Carnival in 1980, as the decades passed, the celebrations grew more and more commercialized, televised and publicized as masses of tourists swarmed into the city.

Then, on February 23, 2020, the Venice Carnival suddenly shut down two days early when three cases of Covid-19 were discovered in the city and thrust the pandemic into the media spotlight of the Western world.

Il medico della peste or "The Black Death Doctor" - Photo: Cat Bauer, Carnival 2016

The word "quarantine" is a Venetian word, and means "forty days." In 1448, the Venice Senate passed a law that required ships and crews to remain isolated outside the city during the time of the plague, which had a 37-day cycle from infection to death.

A distinct mask evolved in response to the serious pandemic that wiped out much of Venice's population on more than one occasion. Il medico della peste or "The Black Death Doctor" had a long beak-like nose stuffed with disinfectants, and, as its name implies, was used to protect doctors from the plague.

In 2021, there was no official, physical Venice Carnival due to the Covid-19 pandemic -- only digital.

Now, two years after a contemporary plague shut down the Venice Carnival without warning, and with the current pandemic hopefully on the wane, Venice has once again hitched up her skirts and is pulsing with life. Even though there are still no official events in Piazza San Marco, this year people from all over the globe arrived in Venice to celebrate a new sense of freedom. Confetti was thick as snow on Piazza San Marco and laughter lightened the air. Wearing a mask became fun again.

Then, during these last days of Carnival 2022, Russia astonishingly attacked Ukraine, adding a thick layer of darkness beneath the festivities.

My heart is with everyone who is suffering. I am against war and violence in any form and fully support harmony and diplomatic solutions. Here's hoping the Venice Carnival is back in all its glory in 2023 and that Europe and the world are at peace.

Ciao from Venezia,
Cat Bauer
Venetian Cat - The Venice Blog

Note: I have published various versions of this article on Venetian Cat - The Venice Blog throughout the years. It was first published in print on February 27, 2001 in the International Herald Tribune - Italy Daily.

It seems that unethical marketer Filippo Merlo of Venice City Tours continues to plagiarize my article in the year 2022 to the point of obsession. even though he was blocked by Google back in 2019 -- he just changes the link and date. From Google: In response to a complaint that we received under the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act, we have removed 7 result(s) from this page. If you wish, you may read the DMCA complaint that caused the removal(s) at LumenDatabase.org.

Message to Filippo Merlo: Knock it off. Ob-la-di ob-la-da Get a life, bra.

April in Venice - Get Ready for Homo Faber & Biennale Art 2022

Venice through a window inside the Giorgio Cini Foundation - Photo: Cat Bauer

(Venice, Italy) The Queen of the Adriatic is ready to welcome visitors. In April, Venice will be the center of the cultural universe with the openings of both the Homo Faber Event and the 59th Biennale International Art Exhibition. Not only will visitors have the opportunity to witness some of the top contemporary artists and artisans on the planet, you will also wander through ancient venues so thick with history and mystery that you can almost reach through the ether and touch the phantoms of the past.

Island of San Giorgio Maggiore

The moment you step off the boat and onto the magical island of San Giorgio Maggiore, you sense adventure in the air. The island was inhabited in ancient Roman times and called Insula Memmia after the Memmo gens, a patrilineal clan who owned property on it. It was christened the Island of San Giorgio Maggio way back in the first half of the ninth century when the first church dedicated to Saint George was built.

 

In 982, Doge Tribuno Memmo granted the island to Abbot Giovanni Morosini to found a Benedictine monastery, which is still on San Giorgio to this very day. The island grew into a prosperous spiritual and economic base, and home to the ecclesiastical sons of Venetian nobility. 

 

Throughout the centuries, and with the addition of some impressive architecture by Andrea Palladio and other masters, it swelled into a thriving center for international get-togethers. In 1951, Count Vittorio Cini transformed the island into a tribute to his son, Giorgio, who was killed in a plane crash, using his great wealth to create the Giorgio Cini Foundation and bring humanism back to mankind. The island has hosted kings, queens and heads of state -- twice it was the setting for the weighty G7 summit.

Homo Faber Event

Crafting a more human future
Living Treasures of Europe and Japan
April 10 to May 1, 2022

 

Island of San Giorgio Maggiore - Photo: courtesy Giorgio Cini Foundation

Homo Faber 2022 celebrates Japan's National Living Treasures and its rich traditional heritage throughout the grounds of the Giorgio Cini Foundation. Fifteen exhibition spaces feature 12 top craftspeople from Japan who have earned the prestigious designation of "National Living Treasures."  

 

Organized by the Michelangelo Foundation for Craftsmanship and Creativity, the international Homo Faber Event is a major cultural exhibition dedicated to master craftspeople and their work. The second edition of the Homo Faber Event opens a portal into the vibrant cultural collaboration between Europe and Japan. It's an immersive experience dedicated to virtuoso master artisans and exceptional emerging craftspeople. 

 

You'll witness a spectrum of designers, curators and artisans imprint a human touch across a rainbow of sectors -- from jewelry to automotive, fashion to flowers, porcelain to glass, theater to interior design, and much, much more. Over 400 unique works drafted by over 350 designers and artisans from over 30 countries will be on display throughout the magnificent Giorgio Cini Foundation and its grounds. 

 

Blossoming Beauty - Venini glass at Homo Faber 2022

I wrote an inspired post after attending the first Homo Faber Event in 2018, along with 62,500 other people, which you can read here:

Homo Faber Shines in Venice - Michelangelo Foundation's Mission for Creativity and Craftsmanship

In addition to the event on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore, this year there will also be a self-guided tour called "In Città" throughout the labyrinthine calli and campi of the historic center of Venice itself. I love this idea! That means you can meet face to face the artisans who keep this city afloat by building their work on a solid foundation of ancient traditions. You can meet the soul of Venice itself.

You will be able to go digital and discover over 60 Venetian artisans, ateliers, museums and galleries by using the Homo Faber website or app. You can create your own tour or follow a suggested itinerary and be able to witness in person the craftspeople of Venice. 

 

Venezia su misura - Photo: Cat Bauer

At the press conference headed by the dynamic Alberto Cavalli, the Executive Director of the Michelangelo Foundation and general curator of Homo Faber, we were gifted with copies of a golden shopping guide called Venezia su misura, or Venice, Made to Measure. For those of us who still appreciate fine print, the beautiful guidebook is published by Gruppo Editoriale in both English and Italian, and contains descriptive passages of select Venetian artisans and their work as well as a fold-out map in the back. If you are are fortunate enough to attend Homo Faber in person, you will be able to purchase a copy in the bookshop. 

Visit the Homo Faber website for lots more information and to book your tickets.

La Biennale di Venezia

59th International Art Exhibition
The Milk of Dreams
April 23 to November 27, 2022

 

Jane Graverl, L'Ecole de la Vanité, 1967 - screenshot

On April 20, 21 and 22, smack in the middle of the Homo Faber Event, is the pre-opening of the 59th La Biennale International Art Exhibition, three days allotted to accredited visitors before the opening to the general public on April 23. Can you imagine such a thing? Venice will be galvanized by visiting adventurers following itineraries of creativity and excellence throughout April and beyond, a perfect way to welcome intrepid travelers back to the city.

 

Leonora Carrington (1917-2011) was a surrealist painter and storyteller who made up whimsical tales for her children complete with fantastical illustrations. She preserved some of her otherworldly stories in a notebook called The Milk of Dreams, which inspired Cecilia Alemani, the curator of the 2022 International Art Exhibition, to re-enchant the world with her own rendition of reality of during these surreal times.

Franz Zéphirin, The Slave Ship Brooks, 2007 - screenshot

Alemani said:

"The Milk of Dreams describes a magical world where life is constantly re-envisioned through the prism of the imagination. It is a world where everyone can change, be transformed, become something or someone else...

 

 ...During these endless months in front of the screen, I have pondered the question of what role the International Art Exhibition should play at this historical juncture, and the simplest, most sincere answer I could find is that the Biennale sums up all the things we have so sorely missed in the last two years: the freedom to meet people from all over the world, the possibility of travel, the joy of spending time together, the practice of difference, translation, incomprehension, and communion..." 

Tishan Hsu, Breath 3, 2021 - screenshot

In addition to the exhibition that takes place in the Central Pavilion at Giardini and in the Arsenale, Biennale Art 2022 also includes 80 National Participations by countries from all over the globe. Visit La Biennale website for lots more information and to watch the press conference with an English translation.

 

With the arrival of these two major global cultural events, as well as a firm foundation of more than a millennium of art and culture, Venice will once again hitch up her skirts and maintain her stalwart position as an international center where diverse civilizations converge. See you soon in Venice!

Ciao from Venezia,

Cat Bauer

Venetian Cat - The Venice Blog

The Last Day of 2021 in Venice Is Magical - Bring On 2022!

The Grand Canal in the Fog from the Accademia Bridge - Photo: Cat Bauer

(Venice, Italy) On the last day of the year 2021, Venice wrapped herself in a cloak of caigo, that thick fog that nestles the city in a protective embrace. Walking through Venice during caigo is like stepping through a cloud and finding solid ground beneath your feet. 

Venice, the impossible city, becomes even more enchanting in the mist. The caigo softens the view and casts a spell on everyone who is fortunate enough to be in town to finish out the year tucked inside the arms of the lagoon.

 

New Year's Eve Day Concert at Palazzo Polignac - Photo: Cat Bauer

Wandering through the caigo and arriving at Palazzo Polignac on the Grand Canal for the morning concert on the day of New Year's Eve made the end of the year even more wondrous.

Covid regulations had knocked out the tenor, but not the spirit of the concert, which overcame a great obstacle with grace and pizzazz. The music was thoughtful and inspirational. From the Overture of William Tell by Rossini played by the four hands of Louis Lortie and Paolo Bressan to the rich notes of soprano Ekaterina Siurina, the experience was simply beautiful. 

The concert was:

In honour of Winnaretta Singer

Princesse Edmond de Polignac (1865-1943)

and in support of the Spirit of Venice

Let's hope that the New Year continues in the same key, and that we can continue to surround ourselves with beauty, creative endurance, and the magical Spirit of Venice.

Happy New Year from Venezia,

Cat Bauer

Venetian Cat - The Venice Blog

Molten Magic: Glass Sculptures of Tony Cragg on the Island of Murano in Venice - #SiliconDioxide

Glass Tooth (Untitled) 2021 by Tony Cragg - Photo: Cat Bauer

(Venice, Italy) The British sculptor Sir Tony Cragg marvels that the human body forms teeth, creating natural sculptures made out of minerals. The enamel that covers human teeth is 96 percent mineral and stronger than bone. Otherwise, he thinks that human beings make boring things and that industry is killing our form. 

"We have to stop impoverishing form. Sculpture is the only way to put form back in the world," said Cragg at the opening of Silicon Dioxide on December 3, his solo show at the Murano Glass Museum. Curated by Berengo Studio in association with the Civic Museums of Venice, it is the first exhibition dedicated to Cragg's use of glass as an artistic medium.

Going to Murano in December - Photo: Cat Bauer

On a clear day, taking a trip to Murano in the winter is like traveling into a surrealistic postcard come to life. The snow-capped Italian Alps loom so close to the water of lagoon that they seem photo-shopped onto the sky. The air is crisp; the locals inhabitants are warm; and the tourists are intelligent. Add the opportunity to view Cragg's glass sculptures up close at the Silicon Dioxide exhibition, and the journey to the Murano Glass Museum becomes a wonderful winter adventure. 

 

Silicon dioxide is the primary ingredient that glass is made of, a miraculous material that transforms from its molten form in the fiery furnaces on Murano to swirling works of art as it cools into a breakable solid. From Cragg's imaginative mind to the hands of master glass-blowers, the glass solidifies into distinct sculptures -- everything from ordinary bottles filled with vegetables and beans to a haunting triptych self-portrait.

 

Self portrait by Tony Cragg - Photo: Cat Bauer

 

Tony Cragg first came to Venice in 1980. Since then, his work has been featured in several editions of the Venice Biennale International Art Exhibition. He represented Britain at the national pavilion in 1988, the same year he won the esteemed Turner Prize. 

In 2009, Cragg first started working with Berengo Studio, the revolutionary glass movement founded by Adriano Berengo in 1989 to whisk the ancient art of glass-making into the future. International artists collaborate with maestro glass-blowers on the island of Murano to create contemporary works of art using the powerful magic of glass. Cragg was featured in the first edition of Glasstress, a collateral exhibition of the Venice Biennale that showcased works produced by Berengo Studio, which has since grown into a recurring contemporary exhibition featuring some of the world's greatest artists.

 

Tony Cragg & Cat Bauer in front of Cisten (1999) sculpture of glass bottles

Photo 2021 Museo del Vetro by Nally Bellati of Contessanally

 

I first saw Tony Cragg's work in Venice at Ca' Pesaro in 2010, and then again in Merano in 2011 where I had the opportunity to talk to him at dinner. I was struck then by the way he seemed to feel the actual spirit of the molecules that make up the different materials he forms into sculptures. Click to read the post:

Tony Cragg in 4D in Venice & Meran

With Silicon Dioxide, Cragg juxtaposes his glass sculptures of the past with new works that have never been exhibited before, including the sculpture of the glass tooth. "I'm fascinated by teeth because they are a mineral sculpture that the body makes. I think it's a great, amazing idea that we eat stuff and somehow we make mineral things -- I think that's quite an astonishing notion... and anthropologically, what we find of a lot of species of human beings, two million years old, whatever -- all that's left are the teeth. It's very archaic and has a strong emotional meaning and quality to it."

Silicon Dioxide runs through March 13, 2022. Go to the Murano Glass Museum for more information. 

 

UPDATE: Tony Cragg's Silicon Dioxide has been extended until May 15, 2022, and is open to the public every day from 10:00AM to 5:00PM.
2ND UPDATE: Tony Cragg's Silicon Dioxide has again been extended, this time until August 21, 2022.

3RD UPDATE: Tony Cragg's Silicon Dioxide has been extended again until October 16, 2022.

Ciao from Venezia,

Cat Bauer

Venetian Cat - The Venice Blog

Anish Kapoor & the Blackest Black in the Universe in Venice, Italy at the Accademia & Palazzo Manfrin + Gillo Dorfles at the Cini

Anish Kapoor & Taco Dibbets at Gallerie dell'Accademia 

Background painting: Madonna of the Treasuers by Tintoretto (1567) 

Photo: Cat Bauer

 

(Venice, Italy) "I'm going to ask Anish Kapoor why he's got exclusive rights to the blackest black in the universe and why he won't let other artists use the color," I said to some colleagues over at the Giorgio Cini Foundation. 

On the morning of Friday, November 12, we were at the Cini for the inauguration of Ghiribizzi  or "Whims," an exhibition of fanciful drawings with clever titles that Gillo Dorfles, the Italian art critic, painter and philosopher, sketched in 2018, just months before his death at age 107. They reminded me of John Lennon's drawings. 

The conversation took place in the impressive Nuova Manica Lunga, designed by the architect Michele De Lucchi. About a decade ago, De Lucchi had transformed the ancient dormitory of the Benedictine monks into a very cool contemporary library. The exhibition is in a small room, Sala Barbantini, off to the right, and will run through January 31, 2022.

Vitriol by Gillo Dorfles over the fireplace. - Photo: Cat Bauer

We all vaguely knew the story about how Anish Kapoor had scored the blackest black color, and the resounding tumult from the art world. Kapoor had signed an exclusive deal with the inventor of Vantablack, "the blackest material in the universe," granting him the right to be the only artist allowed to use it. This caused chaos in the art world. Other artists were outraged that an artist would dare to own a color -- especially pure black -- and attacked Kapoor on social media. 

The artist Stuart Semple led the onslaught. He coined the Instagram hashtag #sharetheblack and created his own exclusive color, Pinkest Pink, which he sold on his website for £3.99 to anyone except Anish Kapoor with the following caveat: 

"You are not Anish Kapoor, you are in no way affiliated to Anish Kapoor, you are not purchasing this item on behalf of Anish Kapoor or an associate of Anish Kapoor."

Kapoor responded with an Instagram image of his middle finger dipped in a jar of Pinkest Pink and the caption: "Up yours #pink."

I had been surprised at Kapoor's response, which seemed almost peevish. I thought he was supposed to be enlightened and above the fray. I told my colleagues I couldn't stay for refreshments. "I don't want to be late. I'll let you know what Kapoor says." 

Manica Lunga Library at the Giorgio Cini Foundation - Photo: Cat Bauer

I made my way out of the monumental Cini Foundation and across the Giudecca Canal to the Gallerie dell'Accademia, where the press conference was being held. 

 

The headline in the press notes, in English:

THE GREAT EXHIBITION THAT THE GALLERIES OF ACCADEMIA IN VENICE
DEDICATE TO THE MAESTRO ANISH KAPOOR
IT WILL ALSO BE ARTICULATED IN A SECOND VENUE, THE HISTORIC GALLERY OF PALAZZO MANFRIN 

Palazzo Manfrin - Photo by Wolfgang Moroder

 

The main reason for the press conference was to announce that not only would Kapoor be having an exhibition at the Accademia next year from April 20 to October 9, there would be a second venue: the historic Palazzo Manfrin in the Cannaregio district, which Kapoor had bought and is in the process of restoring to be the seat of his artistic foundation. 

And yes, the blackest black is coming to Venice. The exhibition will include ground-breaking new works created using carbon nanotechnology, which will be shown for the first time.

Carla Toffolo, Anish Kapoor, Giulio Manieri Elia, Taco Dibbits

Anish Kapoor is considered to be one of the most influential artists working today. Born in Mumbai, India in 1954, he now lives and works in London. His works are permanently exhibited in major museums and collections around the world.

After Giulio Manieri Elia, the Director of the Accademia kicked off the introductions, Taco Dibbits, the curator of the exhibition and distinguished Director of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, started the conversation. Both Kapoor and Dibbits said they were perfectionists and after being forced to communicate using Zoom during the pandemic, they were glad they could be physically together in Venice. 

Dibbits asked Kapoor: "Why Venice and not Florence?" 

Kapoor replied (I am paraphrasing) that Florence is the City of Light and Venice is the City of Darkness. They call it Death in Venice, not Death in Florence. There is melancholy in this city. Titan's the Flaying of Marsyas is a dark, dangerous thing. It is not a work that depicts a scene, it is very contemporary -- it is a thing that is actually taking place.

This immediately struck a chord because one of the very first posts I wrote on this blog way back in January 2008 was about Titian's disturbing work of art:

Late Titian and the Sensuality of Painting (L'ultimo Tiziano e la sensualità della pittura)

Flaying of Marsyas by Titian (c.1570-76)

Dibbits said that Kapoor's work always digs under the surface. Kapoor said that he sees himself as a sculptor who is a painter. 

It was a labyrinthine conversation about the relationship between pigment and thought and physical expression and how color makes a dreamy link between the physical and non-physical world. About how violence and beauty live right next to each other. They wondered where does God exist? And how Art gives a face to God. How human beings invented God and Art...

Kapoor said that Plato sat in the cave and looked out at the light -- that it was a masculine, forward observation -- while Freud looked at the back of the cave into the darkness, which was more feminine and inward. Kapoor said that artists must look into the darkness.

Anish Kapoor
Black Within Me, 2021 Oil on canvas
Photograph: Dave Morgan
©Anish Kapoor. All rights reserved SIAE, 2021

It was one of the best press conferences we've had in years. Much of the credit for the ebb and flow must be given to the translator, the astonishing Carla Toffolo, who appeared to have a photographic memory and translated long, winding dialogues on complicated subjects effortlessly from English to Italian and back again. 

As the discussion delved deeper into esoteric topics, we slowly realized that Toffolo was some kind of genius. No one had ever seen anything like it. At one point Kapoor picked up Toffolo's notebook and showed it to all of us. There were just a few scribbled words. She had not only translated long paragraphs of Kapoor's philosophical meanderings seamlessly, but had captured the essence of his complex soul -- without notes! 

The Blackest Black

I got hold of the mike, and finally had the opportunity to ask Kapoor about Vantablack, the blackest color in the universe, and how other artists were calling it "Kapoor Black," and why wouldn't he share it? Kapoor said that it was an inaccurate criticism -- that he must live with this criticism, but it is inaccurate. 

He said he was sitting in his studio reading the newspaper, and came across a little article about this dark material, Vantablack, a material that was created for military purposes and had no relation to art. It was blacker than a black hole and absorbed 99.8% of light. 

Kapoor wrote to the creator of the material, Ben Jensen. They have since been collaborating for about six or seven years to develop a way Kapoor could use the material in his art. It is not a paint that comes out of a tube. It is very technical and difficult to describe. 

Afterward the press conference, I went up to Kapoor and said, just tell me how it feels to work with the black. He said, "You cannot touch it. It is too dangerous."

Anish Kapoor
The Dark, 2021 Oil on Canvas

Photograph: Dave Morgan
©Anish Kapoor. All rights reserved SIAE, 2021

I have since found a brilliant in-depth article written by Stuart McGurk for the August 2017 issue of GQ. It answers every question you want to know about the story of the blackest black in the universe, and how Kapoor got the exclusive right to use it. After reading the article, I understood completely why Kapoor had dipped his middle finger in the Pinkest Pink.

Like all good controversies, the Battle of the Blackest Black will raise the awareness of the Kapoor exhibition in Venice next spring to a whole other level.

From GQ:

Who’s behind art’s dark little secret, Vantablack?

When one self-taught scientist discovered a substance so black even Nasa couldn't find it, it was set to disrupt everything from Hollywood to fashion. Yet it was an art-world altercation that would hit the headlines. GQ goes behind the scenes in the war for the blackest black

I don't think I've ever read a GQ article before. I was impressed, once I got past the guyspeak. Stuart McGurk does the work of an investigative journalist, taking a deep dive into the controversy of color and examining the issue from all angles. It should have put a stop to the squabbling, but apparently not. Read it yourself and decide. 

One section that struck me was when McGurk seeks out Kassia St Clair, a writer, cultural historian and color expert who explains the importance of pigments and colors. McCurk writes:

It used to be part of an artist's job to source their own colours: to know a pigment alchemist, known as "colourmen", or a Silk Road trader who knew how to get things, or at least make a trip to Venice, at one point the pigment trading capital of the world.

Perhaps this is part of where the outrage about Vantablack comes from: a generation of artists too used to getting their colours in a shop. In some ways, Kapoor sourcing Vantablack for himself is a throwback to what an artist's job used to be.

"Yes," says St Clair. "We're so used to colour being democratic, to going into a shop. But, originally, artists would have to make their own pigments or source them from a particular place. That was part of your craft. That would," she says, "have been part of your reputation."

So it seems that Anish Kapoor, like all great artists, has committed the offense of actually doing his homework. And after seeing him with my own eyes, hearing him with my own ears, speaking to him one-on-one, and reading the GQ story, I have changed my opinion. His response to the Pinkest Pink no longer seems peevish. It seems funny. 

It is fitting that Anish Kapoor will have an exhibition in the Gallerie dell'Accademia, one of the finest collections of classical painting anywhere in the world. Kapoor said, "All art must engage with what went before. The Accademia presents a wonderful and wondrous challenge. I feel a deep commitment to Venice, its architecture and its commitment to the contemporary arts."

I am really looking forward to the arrival of the Blackest Black in the Universe and more from Anish Kapoor both at the Gallerie dell'Accademia and at Palazzo Manfrin. I think it's fantastic that Kapoor is restoring a palace in Venice as the headquarters of his foundation. 

And I never did much like pink.

The Anish Kapoor exhibitions at the Accademia Galleries and Palazzo Manfrin will run from April 20 to October 9, 2022 in conjunction with the next International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale. Go to the Gallerie dell'Accademia for more information.

Ciao from Venezia,

Cat Bauer

Venetian Cat - The Venice Blog