Collective Insight
"COLLECTIVE INSIGHT"
A new painting exhibit proposed for Florence for the 9th Florence Biennale,
Biennale International of Contemporary Art.
An installation or simply an exhibit of paintings?
In June of 2012, my students and I presented a series of paintings in which the subject of every piece was an eye (most being human). The exposition was done in collaboration with Present Contemporary Art in Florence. Now we are ready to put the installation in a new context that will feature many artists from different places. I prefer to call this exhibit an installation because it is presented as one collective body of work and was executed as such from the beginning.
I designed this exhibition just as I have designed others in the past. Those experiences helped me in figure out ways to unite the artwork with common denominators like size and subject.
Every painting was executed by the painter as a single piece of artwork that could both stand on its own and be a part of a collective in order to recognize individuality but also to recognize that each individual is a part of a larger community.
Just as it did in previous collaborations, the repetition of the same subject stimulates a healthy dialogue and confrontation for the artists. Once the artists view the installation, they search for their identity in the art but may only see the artwork of their peers.
Every painter had to choose a picture of an eye (it could have been a photograph they had taken). The important thing was that the photo represented a single eye.
While the subject of the exhibition was decided on spontaneously, it soon developed into something meaningful: the eye represents insight and the window in which we perceive the world. We can look and we can see but we can't look without seeing.
In an era full of dizzying changes that shock us to the extent of mental paralysis, it is a struggle but crucial to "keep your eyes wide open."
The first time we did this installation we noted a clear interaction created between repetition of a large number of works on same subject and the perception of the work as a multitude. We felt like viewers as we observed our own work.
The individualism that characterizes our current experience is emphasized, our intimacy seems shattered and we never feel more alone. The subject itself, from a technical point of view, is a difficult challenge. We've done it all!
Andrea Sole Costa
A new painting exhibit proposed for Florence for the 9th Florence Biennale,
Biennale International of Contemporary Art.
An installation or simply an exhibit of paintings?
In June of 2012, my students and I presented a series of paintings in which the subject of every piece was an eye (most being human). The exposition was done in collaboration with Present Contemporary Art in Florence. Now we are ready to put the installation in a new context that will feature many artists from different places. I prefer to call this exhibit an installation because it is presented as one collective body of work and was executed as such from the beginning.
I designed this exhibition just as I have designed others in the past. Those experiences helped me in figure out ways to unite the artwork with common denominators like size and subject.
Every painting was executed by the painter as a single piece of artwork that could both stand on its own and be a part of a collective in order to recognize individuality but also to recognize that each individual is a part of a larger community.
Just as it did in previous collaborations, the repetition of the same subject stimulates a healthy dialogue and confrontation for the artists. Once the artists view the installation, they search for their identity in the art but may only see the artwork of their peers.
Every painter had to choose a picture of an eye (it could have been a photograph they had taken). The important thing was that the photo represented a single eye.
While the subject of the exhibition was decided on spontaneously, it soon developed into something meaningful: the eye represents insight and the window in which we perceive the world. We can look and we can see but we can't look without seeing.
In an era full of dizzying changes that shock us to the extent of mental paralysis, it is a struggle but crucial to "keep your eyes wide open."
The first time we did this installation we noted a clear interaction created between repetition of a large number of works on same subject and the perception of the work as a multitude. We felt like viewers as we observed our own work.
The individualism that characterizes our current experience is emphasized, our intimacy seems shattered and we never feel more alone. The subject itself, from a technical point of view, is a difficult challenge. We've done it all!
Andrea Sole Costa