Description
PRESSURE, IS THE VOLUME THAT A PERSON IS FORCED TO FIT IN. PRESSURED TO EXIST INTO A SPACE SMALLER THAT THE VOLUME OF HIS BODY. ENCLOSED WITH NO OPENING IN SIGHT, NO DOORS, NO HANDLES AND NO KEY-HOLE.
PRESENT AT THE VENICE BIENNALE OF ARCHITECTURE IN 2023, THE SCULPTURE IS IN FACT A PART OF A TRIO OF SCULPTURES THAT COEXIST AT THE BORDER OF PHYSICAL AND DIGITAL. EACH WORK IS A FULL-SIZE DIGITAL SCAN OF ACTUAL PEOPLE, “PRESSURE” BEING THE ARTIST HIMSELF. EACH SUBJECT IS PORTRAYED IN ACCORDANCE TO A CERTAIN CLASSIC SCULPTURE, CHOSEN CAREFULLY FOR ITS POSE AND MEANING; BUT TRANSFORMED TO FIT OUR CURRENT SOCIO-POLITICAL CONTEXT. PRESSURE IS IN FACT A STUDY OF MICHELANGELO’S CROUCHING BOY.
THE TRIO IS FOCUSED ON TOPICS OF CONFLICT, ISOLATION AND WAR; WITH PROTAGONISTS POSING SOMETIMES IN A SUBVERSIVE AND DEFIANT WAY, RESTING NONCHALANT ON A DEADLY MISSILE, TWISTING THE REALITY AND PORTRAYING WAR THROUGH A DIFFERENT LENS.
YOU MAY HAVE OBSERVED BY NOW THAT, CONCEPTUALLY, THE ARTIST HAS EXPLOITED THE IDEA OF SLICING AND EXTRACTING ONLY THE ESSENTIAL PART OF AN ARTWORK. IN A WAY, TRYING TO PRESENT THE VIEWER ONLY WITH WHAT MATTERS MOST, IN A MINIMALISTIC AND REDUCTIVE WAY, LIKE AN X-RAYS OR BODY SCAN.
THE STORY
THROUGHOUT HISTORY, WAR HAS BEEN A SUBJECT THAT HAS INSPIRED MANY ARTISTS. FROM THE EARLIEST CAVE PAINTINGS DEPICTING BATTLES TO MODERN-DAY PHOTOGRAPHS OF SOLDIERS IN COMBAT, THE IMPACT OF WAR ON ART IS UNDENIABLE.
ONE OF THE MOST SIGNIFICANT WAYS WAR HAS INFLUENCED CONTEMPORARY ART IS BY USING NEW MATERIALS AND TECHNOLOGIES. IN THE AFTERMATH OF WORLD WAR II, FOR EXAMPLE, ARTISTS BEGAN EXPERIMENTING WITH NEW MATERIALS, SUCH AS PLASTICS, WHICH WERE READILY AVAILABLE DUE TO THE WAR EFFORT.
SIMILARLY, CONTEMPORARY ARTISTS HAVE QUICKLY EMBRACED DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES AND SOCIAL MEDIA TO DOCUMENT AND RESPOND TO WAR. ARTISTS HAVE USED THESE MEDIUMS TO CREATE IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCES THAT ALLOW VIEWERS TO ENGAGE WITH WAR’S PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL ASPECTS.
WE DON’T KNOW HOW MICHELANGELO WOULD USE THE TECHNOLOGY AVAILABLE TODAY. STILL, ARTISTS HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO PUSH THE BOUNDARY AND LEAVE A LEGACY OF THEIR OWN.
Dimensions
L 45 CM / W 30 CM / H 65 CM
*Note: because each piece is unique & made by hand, final dimensions may vary slightly.
Limited Edition
Limited edition of 8 +2AP.
REALITY IS JUST A PERSPECTIVE
AS AN ART STUDIO, WE HAVE ALWAYS TRIED TO PUSH THE BOUNDARIES OF MATERIAL, TECHNIQUES, AND TECHNOLOGIES. IN PARALLEL WE ARE CREATING AN IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCES THAT ALLOW VIEWERS TO ENGAGE WITH OUR ARTWORKS FROM A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE, INTO VIRTUAL REALITY.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
In the current context focused on excessive and unsustainable consumerism, the 21st Century welcomes us with a Darwinian transformation for both men and nature. Evolution which leads to the development of a synthetic man living in a synthetic nature. Heavy topics as regeneration and sustainable environment are thrown into the arms of the future generations, that have not been born yet.
Thus, the artist’s creations highlight the synthesis through alternative materials used, such as: synthetic marble (resin and marble dust), synthetic resin (Plexiglass), synthetic cement (Jesmonite), charcoal, wood, and so on. His works have a powerful conceptual plasticity but also physical plasticity, a concept that can be interpreted as modern works of the 21st Century.
His pieces are sold around the world, belonging to private collectors and royal families.
MORE WORKS BY THE ARTIST