on the spiritual matter of art – Announcements – E-Flux

on the spiritual matter of artOctober 17, 2019March 8, 2020

Andrea Carandini in converstion with Bartolomeo Pietromarchi:January 23, 67pm

MAXXI - National Museum of 21st Century ArtsVia Guido Reni 4A00196 Rome italyItalyHours: TuesdaySunday11am7pm,Saturday11am10pm

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What does it mean today to talk about spirituality? Where does spirituality fit into a world dominated by digital and technological culture and an ultra-deterministic mentality? Is there still a spiritual dimension underpinning the demands of art?

In order to reflect on these and other questions MAXXI, the National Museum of XXI Century Arts, is bringing together a number of leading figures from the contemporary art scene in the major group show on the spiritual matter of art, strongly supported by the President of the Fondazione MAXXI Giovanna Melandri and curated by Bartolomeo Pietromarchi (from October 17, 2019 to March 8, 2020). Main partner ENEL.

on the spiritual matter of art is a project that investigates the issue of the spiritual through the lens of contemporary art and, at the same time, that of the ancient history of Rome. In a layout offering diverse possible paths, the exhibition features the works of 19 artists, leading names on the international scene from very different backgrounds and cultures.

There will be a number of installations on display, including those byMatilde Cassani(fabric drapery, like a threshold introducing the space of the sacred),Enzo Cucchi(an artist to whom MAXXI is also devoting an Art Collection Focus show in the Gian Ferrari Hall, October 17January 2020),Jimmie Durham, Haris Epaminonda, Remo SalvadoriandNamsalSiedlecki, produced or revised specifically for this project. The layout opens and closes with sound installations byHassan Khan(a composition for handclaps) andKimsooja(transmitting the echoes of a Tibetan chant), after which one accesses the large central space that houses large two-dimensional works including those byJohn Armleder,Francesco Clemente,Abdoulaye Konat,Victor ManandSean Scullyin close relations with the objects from antiquity (the pair ofPeacocksfrom theMusei Vaticani, theFegato dello ScasatofromVilla Giulia, theWinged Scarabfrom theMusei Capitolini,theChrismon Necklaceand theLeontocefalastatue, both from theMuseo Nazionale Romanoand theGem of the Goddess Romefrom theMuseiCapitolini Fondazione Santarelli). Photography (the hands of Iranian women in the gesture of offering verses by poets of the Farsi tradition byShirin Neshat) and video (Michal RovnerandJeremy Shaw) dialogue with the immersive installations byElisabetta Di Maggio(who recreates with postage stamps the Cosmatesque floor of St. Marks Basilica) and byToms Saraceno(who transforms the fluctuations of spiders webs into sonic vibrations), concluding with a major work of participatory work byYoko Ono.

The question of being, of mans spiritual expansion, has always defined artistic research,says Giovanna Melandri, Art is at times capable of capturing our tension and going beyond the illusion of forms and matter (Maya). As Schopenhauer wrote, art can miraculously elevate itself above life, contemplating and transcending it. I was very eager for this project to go ahead. It was not easy to define its contents and confines, but I am certain that this exhibition will make a further contribution to amplifying the boundaries of the artistic and conceptual research of the MAXXI laboratory.

The compresence and the relationship between contrasting elements are clearly evident,says Bartolomeo Pietromarchi, Director of MAXXI Arte, and its emphasis underlies the entire project. It is actually this impossible composition of body and spirit, between matter and spirit that is the most faithful representation of our existence. By the spiritual stuff of art, I mean that which leverages this dichotomy, between a material dimension bound up with personal experience and a need to rediscover practices and meanings that elevate the spirit above it.

Flanking the exhibition project, an extensive Public Program will see a series of talks with the artists, book presentations, performances, lectures and conferences.