Tate Modern opens Galleries Dedicated to the Arte Povera Movement and Its Legacy |
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| Written by rubin |
| Tuesday, 19 May 2009 03:25 |
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The central space of the new Energy and Process wing will be devoted to a selection of works made by artists in the 1960s and 1970s. The term Arte Povera was coined by the art critic Germano Celant to describe the activities of Italian artists who used the simplest means to create poetic statements based on everyday life. Seen as a reaction against the commercialism of the art market, the work demonstrated a keen appetite to use commonplace or ‘poor’ materials and new processes. This attitude immediately found international resonance. Art could be made from anything: living things, natural and industrial products, or even immaterial substances such as moisture, sound or energy. Traditional definitions of an art work [something missing here] and instead energy and process were emphasised: temporality, materiality, concept and context. The remarkable new acquisitions in this gallery include works by major international figures and will be shown alongside familiar works from Tate’s collection, including Eva Hesse’s Addendum 1967 and Giuseppe Penone’s Tree of 12 Metres 1980-2.  Elsewhere in the
Energy and Process wing Michelangelo Pistoletto’s Venus of the Rags
1967/1974 will be shown with two works by Alighiero Boetti. Pistoletto – a
key figure in the Arte Povera movement – surrounded a marble reproduction
of the classical Callipigia Venus with second-hand clothes which had been
used to clean his Mirror Paintings. Clearly, the work brings together two
opposing elements: classical and contemporary, ‘high’ and ‘low’, precious
and throw-away, hard and soft, and emphasises the artists’ attitude that
all forms, materials, ideas and means are available and to be used.
Introduced by the pairing of two iconic pieces by Kasimir Malevich and Richard Serra, a series of displays radiate out in galleries around the central space. Powerful works by Ana Mendieta and Marissa Merz will feature in two new monographic displays. These artists have recently been added to the Tate Collection demonstrating the commitment by Tate to acquire and display works by important international women artists. There will also be a gallery dedicated to the experimental films of Yvonne Rainer. There are two broader themes. A key display, titled ‘Beyond Painting’ explores the expansion of painting off the wall throughout the twentieth century in ways that anticipate concerns explored by the generation associated with Arte Povera. This will include reliefs by Pablo Picasso and Kurt Schwitters, and more materially explorative works by Alberto Burri, Lucio Fontana, Daniel Spoerri and others. Another room will look at the practice of Land Art. It will present a group of works which explore the natural environment as artistic source, bringing into question the supposed difference of nature and culture through more observational or conceptual means. Click on logo below to add this article to your favorite Social Website ~ |
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