Americans in Venice

Venice is, among many other wonderful things, synonymous with glass. The work of the Murano glassblowers has inspired countless artists to explore the possibilities of this fascinating medium and break the barriers of functionality to land into full-fledged artistic territory. Le Stanze del Vetro and the Fondazione Giorgio Cini on the Island of San Giorgio Maggiore present a superb show of 155 pieces and installations that trace the history of the American Studiio Glass through the creative output of artists who have studied glasswork in Venice.

Founded in 1962 by Harvey K. Littleton, this movement created an artistic roadmap that was sometimes based on American themes (e.g. the American flag), but always aligned with the Venetian tradition for both aesthetics and technical execution.

My photo skills have not improved, for which I apologise, but the results of these collaborations are truly outstanding. Some of the works defy and redefine the idea of what glass can do, a medium that is here celebrated for its potential to take a seemingly infinite number of shapes, colours and textures. Sublime.

#lestanzedelvetro #americanstudioglass #fondazionecini #venini #seguso #glass #glasswork #art #contemporaryart #venice #murano #venezia #artblog #artblogger #beyondthecanvasblog

Niccolò dell'Arca's Lamentation over the Dead Christ (c. 1463) - Santa Maria della Vita, Bologna

"This Christ will never be forgotten. Was it made from earth? Was it rotting flesh? I didn’t know what the medium was […] The three Marys enraged by suffering, demented by the suffering […]. Can you imagine the petrified scream?’ - Gabriele d’Annunzio (1924)

Remember the last time you saw an enraged, demented Mary? No, me neither. And that's because, with the Compianto sul Cristo Morto, Nicolò dell'Arca did the unthinkable. He took a sacred subject and then proceeded to treat its protagonists like human beings. I believe this is, quite simply, a thoroughly revolutionary representation of universal pain in the way we all know it.

While the men (Joseph of Arimathea and John the Baptist) are numb and don't seem to know quite what to do, the Marys take centre stage by displaying the wildest array of emotions. The mother of Christ (2nd left) is bent by sorrow, leaning to one side as if she's about to break. Her hands are not clasped in prayer, they are firmly squeezed against each other in agony. And what of Mary of Salonne (1st left) who's digging her fingernails in her thighs to contain an even bigger outburst? Mary of Cleophas (2nd right) is stretching her arms forwards not wanting to see the corpse of Christ. Look at Mary Magdalene (1st right), eyes swollen with tears, whose gaping mouth emits perhaps the most piercing scream. She seems ready to throw herself on top of the dead body. So. Much. Pathos.

As it's often the case, dall'Arca's revolution came too soon and couldn't be fully appreciated. The hospital this was made for rejected the work on the grounds that it scared the patients (maybe they had a point), so the statues ended up in an niche before eventually being relegated to a place near the food market. Worth remembering that this powerful and groundbreaking (originally polychrome) terracotta masterpiece was created 200 years before Gian Lorenzo Bernini showed the world how marble could be used to capture emotions in motion.

#niccolodellarca #lamentation #terracotta #sculpture #quattrocento #bologna #geniusbononiae #artblog #artblogger #beyondthecanvasblog

Church of Santa Maria della Vita, Bologna

Photos all mine.

Cold War and Soft Power

“How can you be an artist and not reflect the times?” - Nina Simone 

I’ve just started reading this book by Frances Stonor Saunders in which she looks at how the CIA systematically infiltrated and exploited the arts during the Cold War to combat the soviets and grow America’s geopolitical influence.

The legendary singer and human rights activist Nina Simone was one of the artists manipulated by the Agency for political purposes. In 1961, she was invited to perform at the ‘Festival of Negro Art and Culture in Africa and America’ in Lagos, whose official aim was to explore the ‘relationship between the culture and art of Africa and the Americas‘. But the void left by the British in postcolonial Nigeria opened up irresistible opportunities for the US to provide financial help and build political alliances, so it turns out that the festival was driven by an agenda that went well beyond arts and culture.

The same had happened to Louis Armstrong the year before when he was sent to the Congo. This was when the first post colonial president had just been elected. In reality, the US government wanted to infiltrate and topple Patrick Lumumba’s pro-soviet regime. We all know how that ended. 

I believe Armstrong begrudgingly went along with the propagandistic projecf, but it apoears Nina didn’t know she was being used, and I reckon she would have been fuming if she did.

#ninasimone#legend#activism#humanrights#freedom#rebel#freespirit#softpower#louisarmstrong#tutankhamen#lumumba#music#blackmusic#blackculture#art#allartispolitical#artblog#artblogger#beyondthecanvasblog