The Project By Stefano Arienti Is A Focus On Europe For Artverona 2022 #Italiansystem
Arienti created Corso Europa (from G.B. Piranesi) for this occasion: a carpet measuring 500 square meters welcoming visitors at the main entrance to the Art Show inspired by the work of the eighteenth-century engraver and architect Giovanni Battista Piranesi, made using thread obtained entirely from recycled plastic waste.
Stefano Arienti is the artist invited to design the Red Carpet for ArtVerona 2022 #ITALIANSYSTEM.
The Red Carpet at ArtVerona is an identifying sign of the new approach taken by the event under the artistic direction of Stefano Raimondi. It is a monumental work embodied as a carpet measuring five hundred square metres welcoming visitors at the main entrance to Art Show as an engaging experience immediately immersing them in art.
The second edition ( first edition – 2021 with Paola Pivi) of this project was again implemented in partnership with Aquafil S.p.A., one of the main exponents in Italy and around the world in the production of synthetic fibres from recycled material. The Group has more than 2,900 employees and 19 factories in three continents and seven countries. It is a landmark for quality, innovation and new models of sustainable development.
Stefano Arienti (Asola, MN, 1961), one of the most highly-regarded contemporary Italian artists. He will create a large, modular carpet named Corso Europa (from G.B. Piranesi).
Inspired by the work of the famous XVIII century Venetian architect and engraver, the path in the Arienti’s hands becomes a reflection on the European continent, including all the states that have been part of its history in various ways.
The artist started off from two engravings in the first volume of Roman Antiquities by Piranesi, published in 1756, which both have the following caption: marble fragments of the ground plan of ancient Rome, excavated two centuries ago, in the ruins of the Temple of Romulus, now in the Campidoglio Museum. By cutting out, rotating and juxtaposing portions of these images, Arienti reorganized the fragments as if they were the paving of a road, recalling Roman paving stones as well stepping stones in a rock garden.
“A dash of Roman heritage still remains,” said Stefano Arienti, “in the culture and geography of contemporary Europe – a continent with uncertain geographical and cultural boundaries, especially in the East.
The names of the states across the European continent characterize the boulders of the road, but there is no precise criterion underlying how they are arranged. They take forwards, backwards and sideways directions, rather like the Roman inscriptions already found in fragments. The extreme magnification of the original images (both original measuring 465 x 680 mm) transforms the pieces of marble into gigantic stones where even a small group can stand and it is just as enjoyable to jump from one from boulder to the next.”
“Stefano Arienti’s work,” said Giulio Bonazzi, President of Aquafil, “was made using regenerated ECONYL® yarn, a nylon thread entirely obtained from recycled plastic waste, such as old fishing nets, carpets, fabrics or industrial waste. It is designed to be decomposed, at the end of the event, into many smaller works that will thereby be able to support the work of associations dedicated to recycling and recovery projects to protect the environment. We believe that such social impact is truly important and full of meaning. This is why we also wish to thank the Sit-In company that produced it.”
ArtVerona is organized by Veronafiere. Art Director Stefano Raimondi is assisted by a consolidated team of art critics and historians – Jessica Bianchera, Ginevra Bria, Giacinto Di Pietrantonio, Marta Ferretti, Giulia Floris, Elena Forin, Maria Marzia Minelli, Claudia Santeroni, Maria Chiara Valacchi and Saverio Verini – now joined by Domenico Quaranta, known for his investigation into new media art and the impact of digital media on artistic activity, as the new curator of the Evolution section.
