Exhibition curated by Elio Grazioli and Walter Guadagnini
Works by Darren Almond, Enrico Bedolo, Ricardo Cases, Pierluigi Fresia, Stephen Gill, Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster e Ange Leccia, Mishka Henner, Amedeo Martegani, Richard Mosse, Thomas Ruff, Batia Suter, Carlo Valsecchi, Helmut Völter

The approach chosen for the No Man Nature exhibit is to explore the topics of ‘nature without man’ and ‘man without nature’, suggesting a heuristic reflection flowing from two opposite extremes. These extremes no longer mean just the unexplored, the unknown, the invisible and the unimaginable, but actually imply the possibility of a world no longer inhabited by man and, at the opposite end, of man’s invention of a world no longer inhabited by nature. These possibilities can in turn be perceived as dangers: on the one hand, there is the ecological danger of the destruction of nature and the self-destruction of the human species, and on the other, there is the danger of a “technological” euphoria with the attendant isolation of the human being from the world.   And again: sometimes we yearn to live in an unspoilt and deserted natural environment, like a dream of an impossible new beginning, while at the same time we are building a world modelled entirely on the virtual and the imaginary, including a natural world that is equally virtual and imaginary.

Finally, we might argue that if things are, or are going, that way, then there must be a reason for it. Hence, our reflection on extreme cases will also be an inquiry into ‘where we are at’. The exhibit uses images in order to raise these questions, putting forward examples that will urge viewers to ask themselves what their own position is with regard to these questions.

The general idea is always to use photography not as a document and a representation in itself, but as an opportunity in terms of the questions it elicits and its thought-provoking power. The issues raised about the man-nature relationship thus also become a metaphor of the role and function of photography.

Born in 1963 in Milan, where he lives and works.

Amedeo Martegani made his artistic debut in a now celebrated group show entitled Il Cangiante (Iridescent), organized in 1986 by Corrado Levi at the Contemporary Art Pavilion in Milan. The characteristic lightness of touch, zest for intellectual adventure and rejection of ideological interpretation of that group of young artists gathered around the spaces of the former Brown Boveri factory was reflected by the title of the exhibit, which today, over fifteen years later, might still be used as the perfect epithet for Martegani himself.

Looking back, the career path of the Milanese artist during the last decade looks like a progression through a series of sidesteps, a meandering course through his many different interests, passions and languages which eludes any attempt at definition or labelling. His approach stems from a mental framework that rejects all certainties and dogmas, particularly with respect to art. Following his personal pathways, away from the beaten track, and shunning the static ossification that comes of institutionalized roles, Martegani allows himself to be driven by changeable and unpredictable bursts of enthusiasm with the spirit of one who knows that the present cannot find its justification in history.

There is no medium nor technique, there is no subject, historical or contemporary, that cannot or should not go through the filter of the artist: beauty is important, as is everything appertaining to it, including nature, ethics, elegance and spontaneity, but also and most of all, it is important not to emphasize, not to display or underscore but to investigate and stay close to reality, from the most personal and existential interpretation of reality to the most tangible, factual and social interpretation of it.

The work of art is an opportunity for making a connection, whether it is a story to be pursued through signs “spread” by a paintbrush or a spatula, or an analogy between a representation and something else, whether it is a call for direct contact, a yearning or a shared pleasure. The artwork is both an event and a track to be followed, just as in nature, in which the artist – as suggested by the title of one of his works created in 1993, ‘Esserci, Nascondervicisi, Fare Capolino’ (Being there, hiding there, peeping through) – whilst certainly being there, does not use his presence in order to affirm an ontological privilege but in order to peep through. Art is this practice, suspended between being and doing, between peeping through and creating signs.

Saturday, May 16_11am_Teatro Cavallerizza

CONFERENCES

No Man Nature: Diane Dufour, Elio Grazioli and Walter Guadagnini with Enrico Bedolo, Pierluigi Fresia, Mishka Henner, Carlo Valsecchi, Helmut Völter. Book signing to follow