Lo spazio del sacro
Galleria Civica di Modena; 5th december 2010 – 6th march 2011
biographies
ADEL ABDESSEMED
Adel Abdessemed, born in Constantine (Algeria) in 1971, lives and works in Paris.
After studying at the École des Beaux-Arts in Algeria he moved to France, where he completed his
training. In 2001 he went to New York to take part in the “International Studio Program at the P.S.1
Contemporary Art Center”.
His main solo shows include those at the P.S.1, New York (2007); the MIT List Visual Art Center,
Cambridge, Massachusetts (2008); Le Magasin-Centre National d‟Art Contemporain de Grenoble,
Grenoble, France (2008), and at the Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, Turin (2009). In 2007
he took part in the 52nd Venice Biennale, in 2008 at the 7th Gwangju Biennial, Gwangju, Korea e
and at the 10th Havana Biennial, Cuba, in 2009. His works may be found in prestigious collections,
such as that of the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris; the Israel Museum, Jerusalem; the Musée d‟Art
Moderne et Contemporain, Geneva; the Musée d‟Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, and that of
Palazzo Grassi, Venice. Abdessemed never uses a single expressive medium: his work shifts from
video to photography, from performance to sculptural installations.
In Modena, he presents the video God is design, 2005, made up of 3,050 designs featuring different
symbolic religious elements, from Christianity to Judaism to Islam, mixed together to form a sort of
universal language.
GIOVANNI ANSELMO
Giovanni Anselmo, born in Borgofranco d‟Ivrea in 1934, lives and works in Turin. Among the
greatest exponents of Arte Povera, after 1968 his artistic research turned to a conceptual thought
concentrated on the investigation of materials and shapes. Over the course of his career, he has held
a great number of solo exhibitions both in Italy and abroad, such as that at the Museum Kurhaus
Kleve (2004) and at the Renaissance Society, Chicago (1997). He took part in the Venice Biennale
in 1978, 1980 and 1990, when he won the Golden Lion for Painting. His works are to be found in a
great number of national and international public collections, including that of the GAM in Turin,
the Museum of Modern Art of New York, the Museum of Contemporary Art of Los Angeles and the
SMAK in Gand. In 1989 the Galleria Civica di Modena featured a solo exhibition of his work at the
Palazzina dei Giardini.
On show here: Il panorama intorno verso oltremare dove le stelle si avvicinano di una spanna in
più (1991-2010), a work with which the artist highlights the possibility of identifying a point of
joining and affinity between apparently incompatible elements or of opposite nature, through the
interfacing of different materials.
KADER ATTIA
Kader Attia, born in 1970 in Paris, lives and works in Berlin. His entire work is influenced by the
intercultural conflicts which he has experienced since he was a child, especially in the years spent in
Congo, Venezuela and Algeria. In 2003 he took part in the Venice Biennale, in 2005 in the Lyon
Biennial and in 2007 he held his first solo show in the United States, at the Institute of
Contemporary Art (ICA) in Boston. His most recent projects include his one-man shows at the
BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art in Newcastle (2007) and at the Centro de Arte
Contemporaneo of Quarte in Spain (2008). In the same year he was artist in residence at the IASPIS
in Stockholm. In 2009 he took part in the Paris Triennial and the Havana Biennial. He was awarded
a prize at the Cairo Biennial in 2008, and also won the Abraaj Capital Prize in 2010, as well as a
place on the Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship Program.
On display here: Small History of a Myth: The Dome of the Rock, a 2010 multimedia installation
based on the reproduction of a nut and bolt representing the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, an
emblematic monument, evocative of inter-religious conflicts and globalised contemporary culture.
PAOLO CAVINATO
Paolo Cavinato, born in Mantua in 1975, where he lives and works. He graduated in set design from
the Fine Arts Academy of Brera. In 2008 he took part in the international competition for young
sculptors held by the Fondazione Arnaldo Pomodoro, in which he was awarded third place. In 2010
he won the Solo @ 108 Exhibition held by the Royal British Society of Sculptors in London.
He has taken part in a number of different solo and group shows both in Italy and abroad, including
those at the Istanbul Biennial in 2005, the Festival of Italian Culture in China in 2007, the Premio
Internazionale Arte e Laguna at the Fondazione Benetton in Treviso in 2008, Art in the City,
Egmont Park, Brussels, in 2010. In 2011 the Royal British Society of Sculptors of London will
dedicate a solo exhibition to his work.
In Modena he presents a site-specific project entitled Reflections-Cadute, an installation which
represents the action of time and its passing in relation to space.
CHEN ZHEN
Chen Zhen (Shanghai 1955 – Paris 2000). Having trained during the years of the Chinese Cultural
Revolution, he lived and worked between Shanghai, New York and Paris. While Chen Zhen was
initially oriented towards painting, he then went on to work on installations starting by putting
together everyday objects such as beds, seats, tables, rescued from oblivion and given a new lease
of life in which – unlike their original function – they are no longer usable by man. His work is
influenced by Taoist philosophy and Buddhist spirituality. Among the most important international
exhibitions, we might remember that at the New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York, 1994;
the Centre for Contemporary Art, Kitakyushu, Japan, 1997; the Guggenheim Museum Soho, New
York, 1998; the Venice Biennale, 1999; the Ludwig Museum, Cologne, 1999; the GAM, Turin,
2000; the Serpentine Gallery, London, 2001; the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, 2002; PS1,
New York, 2003.
In Modena, in one of the rooms of the Palazzina dei Giardini, Chairs of Nirvana will be on show:
an evocative sculpture made up of chairs forming a dome.
VITTORIO CORSINI
Vittorio Corsini was born in Cecina (Livorno) in 1956. He lives and works in Florence. His main
solo exhibitions include those held at the Galleria L‟Attico, Rome and the Galleria Pino Pascali,
Polignano a Mare (1991); at the Galleria Cardi, Milan (1994); at the Galleria Artra, Milan and the
ACP Galerie, Salzburg (1997); at the Galleria Civica d‟Arte Contemporanea, Syracuse; at the Esso
Gallery, New York; the ex-St. Niccolò hospital, Connolly Pavilion, Siena; the Palazzo Bricherasio,
Turin (1998); the Galleria d‟Arte Moderna, Bologna (1999); and at the Galleria Artra, Milan (2002).
Corsini‟s research focuses largely on the concept and the ways of living, the dynamics surrounding
life in both domestic and public spaces, and the relationships that are created between people in
these environments.
For Lo spazio del sacro he presents GOD SAVE the PEOPLE, a sculpture in lacquered wood
representing four floor plans of four different buildings of worship of different religions,
illuminated by a light shining from within.
JOSEP GINESTAR
Josep Ginestar was born in the Marina Alta Region (Spain) in 1957. He lives and works in Valencia.
He attended the Academy of Fine Arts in Paris and graduated at the Valencia Polytechnic. His work
is based on the search for new languages to express themes dealing with spirituality and sharing
with nature, mainly by using a language based on the sobriety and simplicity of his materials. Most
of his works have to do with Morocco and in particular with its desert landscape. He has exhibited
in a number of countries like Spain, France, Morocco, Cuba, Egypt, the UK, Portugal, Mexico,
Germany, Holland and he has also participated in ARCOmadrid, Art London, the Cairo Biennial, as
well as fringe events of the Havana Biennial.
For Lo Spazio del Sacro he has come up with a site-specific installation for the cloister of Palazzo
Santa Margherita, entitled Todos buscamos: a great sphere made up of hundreds of handprints
(outlined on metal) of those who frequent the Palazzo, surrounding a golden sphere.
ANISH KAPOOR
Anish Kapoor was born in Bombay in 1954. He lives and works in London. A key figure on the
contemporary arts scene, he has exhibited in the most important museums around the world and his
works are to be found in both public and private international collections. Kapoor examines the
dialectics of opposites and it is the use of pure colour that constitutes a constant features of his
works, providing a symbol of the synthesis between East and West. Since the „80s he has played a
key role in New British Sculpture, alongside artists such as Cragg, Deacon, Woodrow and Gormley.
In 1990 he took part in the Venice Biennale, as a representative of the UK, and was awarded the
Premio Duemila prize. In 1992 he won the Turner Prize and the Premio Duemila once again at the
Venice Biennale. This was followed by exhibitions throughout the world, as well as public and
private commissions. His works are on display at the Tate in London, the MOMA in New York, the
Reina Sofia in Madrid, the Kunsthalle in Basel, and the Stedelijk Museum of Modern Art in
Amsterdam.
In Modena he presents a work of strong evocative impact, dating back to 2004, made up of a light
source which provides the only point of reference within one of the spaces of the Palazzina dei
Giardini.
RICHARD LONG
Richard Long was born in Bristol (UK) in 1945, where he lives and works. In 1972 he took part in
Documenta in Kassel, and in 1978 he was at the Venice Biennale. An artist of international
standing, he has exhibited throughout the world and his works may be found in many of the most
prestigious collections of contemporary art. His recent exhibitions of note include his solo shows at
the Anthony d‟Offay Gallery in London and at the Sperone Westwater in New York, as well as the
retrospective at the Royal West of England Academy of Bristol. Among his other awards, in 1988
he was given the Turner Prize at the Tate Gallery in London. The artist is known for his “walks”,
the journeys on foot that he has undertaken around the world; “performances” that take place
against natural landscapes that do not contemplate the presence of man. Long‟s intention is to
accredit the relationship between man and the environment as the creative action par excellence:
both intimate and primitive. His research has led him to realise great sculptures within important
exhibition spaces, such as Arizona Circle (1987), present here, which is based on essential and
archetypal marks – such as spirals and lines – using materials gathered on his solitary walks.
JAUME PLENSA
Jaume Plensa was born in Barcelona in 1955, where he lives and works. Since 1980 he has taken
part in major exhibitions in European capitals. At the start of his career his work was linked to
heavy materials such as iron and bronze, which he used for the creation of anthropomorphic works
starting from the joining together and disassembling of materials. As time went by, the artist added
various other elements and materials to his works, like plastics, glass and synthetic materials which
allow him to play with light in order to give greater life to his creations. The Galleria Civica di
Modena held a solo exhibition of his work at the Palazzina dei Giardini in 1994. Jaume Plensa is
currently the only living artist to whom a solo exhibition has been dedicated at the Nasher Sculpture
Center in Dallas. He has presented numerous projects for public spaces throughout the world,
including the Crown Fontain (1999-2004) at the Millennium Park in Chicago, Bridge of Light in
Jerusalem (1998-2002) and Seven Deities of Good Fortune in Tokyo (1999-2000).
For the Modena event, he presents Jerusalem, a monumental installation realised in 2006 made up
of 18 gongs set out inside the main hall of Palazzo Santa Margherita, each bearing the inscription of
a passage from the Song of Solomon.
ROBERTO PACI DALÒ
Roberto Paci Dalò was born in Rimini in 1962. He lives and works between Berlin and Rimini. He
is an artist whose work focuses on both sound and drawing, expanding them through sculpture,
installation, music, film and theatre. His work has been supported, among others, by John Cage and
Aleksandr Sokurov. With his Giardini Pensili group, he presents theatre/music shows (in which he
directs both the scenes and the music), television and radio programmes, and collaboration projects.
A pioneer in the use of digital technologies, he has given live media performances in the key arenas
of the international electronic scene. In 1993 he received the Berliner Künstlerprogramm des
DAAD prize, and he is a member of the Internationale Heiner Müller Gesellschaft of Berlin. His
recent projects include the publication of the book Millesuoni. Deleuze, Guattari e la musica
elettronica (Cronopio) and the issue of the record Alluro (21st Records). His works have been
presented in Europe, the USA, Canada, Latin America, Mexico, the Middle East, Russia, as well as
at the Kunsthalle Wien in Vienna, the Venice Biennale, the Vienna Opera, Ars Electronica in Linz,
the Fundació Joan Miró in Barcelona, the MaerzMusik in Berlin, the Locarno Film Festival, the
Museo Nitsch in Naples, and the Charlottenborg in Copenhagen. www.giardini.sm
For this exhibition (in collaboration with the Fondazione Teatro Comunale di Modena) he has
produced the installation entitled Sun Tzu, commissioned by the Galleria Civica of Modena. The
work is an arch of seven and a half metres suspended inside the Dome of the Palazzina dei Giardini:
a sculpture in wood and metal which, thanks to a special device, produces a sound which rings
throughout the space.
WAEL SHAWKY
Wael Shawky lives and works in Alexandria, Egypt. The Egyptian artist has received numerous
prizes and international recognition for his works, including the International Award of The Islamic
World Arts Initiative, the Grand Nile Prize at the 6th Cairo Biennial, and in 2009 he won the Grand
Prize at the 25th Alexandria Biennial. He took part in the 51st Venice Biennale as well as the 9th
Istanbul Biennial. He has held exhibitions in key contemporary art venues, such as the Townhouse
Gallery of Contemporary Art, Cairo; the Artists Space, New York; MACRO, Rome; the Martin
Gropius Bau, Berlin; the Kunsthalle Fridericianum, Kassel, and the Tate Modern, London.
Shawky‟s exploration is rooted in his cultural and territorial origins, but the perception of the
themes addressed – like modernisation, cultural hybridisation and marginalisation – all have a deep-
seated international importance.
In Modena the artist presents Al Aqsa Park, a video shot in 2006 in which the Dome of the Rock in
Jerusalem is seen as a spinning top, revolving on its own axis: a metaphor highlighting the complex
equilibrium between politics and religion.