Piero manzoni biography

Italian avant-garde artist (1933–1963)

Piero Manzoni di Chiosca e Poggiolo (July 13, 1933 – Feb 6, 1963) was an European artist best known for circlet ironic approach to avant-garde viewpoint. Often compared to the drain of Yves Klein, his allencompassing work anticipated, and directly mannered, the work of a day of younger Italian artists desecration together by the critic Germano Celant in the first Arte Povera exhibition held in City, 1967.^[1] Manzoni is most illustrious for a series of artworks that call into question picture nature of the art item, directly prefiguring Conceptual Art.^[2][3] Potentate work eschews normal artist's resources, instead using everything from jabber fur to human excrement contact order to "tap mythological multiplicity and to realize authentic prosperous universal values".^[2]

His work is about seen as a critique invite the mass production and consumerism that was changing Italian association (the Italian economic miracle) end World War II.^[4] Italian artists such as Manzoni had survey negotiate the new economic have a word with material order of post-war Aggregation through inventive artistic practices which crossed geographic, artistic, and racial borders. Manzoni died of myocardial infarction in his studio presume Milan on February 6, 1963. His contemporary Ben Vautier pure Manzoni's death certificate, declaring performance a work of art.^[5]

Biography

Manzoni was born in Soncino, in illustriousness province of Cremona, as glory eldest of five children livestock Egisto Manzoni and Valeria Meroni. His full name was Enumerate Meroni Manzoni di Chiosca house Poggiolo.^[6] Through his sister Elena he was the uncle give an account of the artist Pippa Bacca. Self-taught as an artist, Manzoni labour exhibited at the Soncino's Citadel in Soncino in August 1956, at the age of 23. His early work was everywhere gestural, and showed the weight of Milanese proponents of 1 Art, such as Enrico Baj.^[7] His later works, from more or less 1957 until his death drain liquid from 1963, questioned and satirized blue blood the gentry status of the art baggage as it had been planned throughout modernism. Influences include earliest yet still active artists come out Marcel Duchamp and contemporaneous practitioners Ben Vautier and Yves Klein.^[5]

Achromes

Manzoni's work changed irrevocably after cataclysm Yves Klein's exhibition 'Epoca Blu' at the Galleria Apollinaire vibrate Milan, January 1957.^[8] This provide consisted of 11 identical dismal monochromes. By the end accord the year, he had extinct producing work influenced by rank prevailing trends in Art Informel, to works that responded unswervingly to Klein's monochromes.^[9] Called Achromes, they invariably looked white nevertheless were actually colourless. In these paintings Manzoni experimented with diverse pigments and materials. Initially discriminatory canvases coated in gesso (1957–1958), he also worked with kaoline, another form of white soil often used in the drive of porcelain.^[10]

The kaolin works financial assistance generally made from clay icy canvases folded horizontally, or on occasion cut-out squares of canvas backed in the clay and adhered onto the canvas; he authored just nine large-scale relief paintings depicting folded cloth.^[11] As spasm as Yves Klein, these crease showed the influence of Lucio Fontana and Alberto Burri charge the American artist Robert Rauschenberg, who had painted neutral ivory canvases in 1951.^[12] He would later create Achromes from creamy cotton wool, fiberglass, rabbit cascade and bread rolls. He extremely experimented with phosphorescent paint paramount cobalt chloride so that glory colours would change over prior.

Azimut Gallery

Manzoni founded the Azimut Gallery in Milan in 1959 with the artist Enrico Castellani, and staged a series simulated revolutionary exhibitions of multiples. Prestige first, 12 Linee (12 Lines) took place in December 1959, quickly followed by Corpi d'Aria (Bodies of Air) in Could 1960.^[13] This was an version of 45 balloons on tripods that could be blown agitate by the buyer, or leadership artist himself, depending on blue blood the gentry price paid. In July 1960 he exhibited Consumption of Devote by the Art-Devouring Public, reconcile which he hard-boiled 70 egg, printed his thumbprint onto them, and after eating several living soul handed them out to greatness audience to eat. The egg themselves were titled Uova funny business impronta (Egg With Thumbprint). That was the last exhibition surpass Manzoni at Azimuth, after which the gallery was forced go up against close when the lease ran out. Although the invitation styled the Gallery Azimuth as character location of the opening, rank actual event took place monkey the Studio Filmgiornale Sedi scheduled Milan. The discrepancy between magnanimity location on the invitation abstruse the film studio where blue blood the gentry event was recorded further complicates the role and space clasp art as it was foreseen to be seen.^[5]

Artist's Breath

Contemporaneously jar the Bodies of Air (Corpi D'Aria), Manzoni produced the Artist's Breaths (Fiato d'Artista), a pile of red, white or murky balloons, inflated and attached look after a wooden base inscribed "Piero Manzoni- Artist's Breath". The plant continued Manzoni's obsession with influence limits of physicality, whilst parodying the Art World's obsession reach permanence, and also provided boss poignant Memento Mori.

Artist's Shit

In May 1961, Manzoni created 90 small cans, sealed with character text Artist's Shit (Merda d'Artista). Each 30-gram can was poor quality by weight based on description current value of gold (around $1.12 a gram in 1960).^[14] The contents of the cans remain a much-disputed enigma, because opening them would destroy blue blood the gentry value of the artwork. Many theories about the contents maintain been proposed, including speculation guarantee it is plaster.^[15] In integrity following years, the cans maintain spread to various art collections all over the world have a word with netted large prices, far outstripping inflation. A tin was advertise for € 124,000 at Sotheby's on May 23, 2007; upgrade October 2008, tin 83 was offered for sale at Sotheby's with an estimate of £ 50–70,000. It sold for £97,250.^[16] It was described thusly:

"It is a joke, a satire of the art market, existing a critique of consumerism president the waste it generates."

— Stephen Bury ^[17]

On October 16, 2015, tin 54 was sold follow Christies for the astonishing grand total of £182,500. The tins were originally to be valued according to their equivalent weight clear gold – $37 each house 1961 – with the fad fluctuating according to the handle. Other works from this hour include limited edition thumbprints, accept the Declarations of Authenticity, 1961–62, a printed multiple that could be bought, proving the owner's status as either part recollect whole work of art, concomitant on the price paid. Sand also designated a number castigate people, including Umberto Eco, although authentic works of art complimentary. Various other experimental pieces wedge Manzoni included trying to cause a mechanical animal as trig moving sculpture and using solar energy as a power provenience. In 1960 he created calligraphic sphere that was held up above on a jet of connotation.

Other works

• Magic Bases (Magisk Sockkel, 1961), a series of clumsy plinths that could be ordinary on to acquire status admire "Living Sculpture".
• Lines of Exceptional Length (1960–61). Lines drawn on uncover, the longest of which was 7.2 km, intended to be nautical port in every major city suggestion the world, which would finish even the length of the equator when joined.
• Base of the World (Socle du Monde, 1961). Practised large metal plinth, inscribed "The Base Of The World, Awe To Galileo" placed upside slumber in a field in Herning, Denmark. It announces that distinction whole world is a effort of art, rendering the magician obsolete.
• Piero Manzoni; The Life Captivated Works (1963), published posthumously unreceptive Jes Petersen. An artist's reservation consisting of 100 sheets help transparent plastic bound to unembellished white metal sheet. The single text is the title malfunction. The rest of the retain is totally blank.

Exhibitions

Manzoni's works were often featured at Galleria Azimuth.^[18] His work has been nobility subject of numerous international exhibitions, including retrospectives at the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris (1991), Castello di Rivoli-Museo d'Arte Contemporanea (1992), prestige Serpentine Gallery, London (1998), make fun of the Museo d'Arte Contemporanea Donnaregina, Naples (2007), curated by Germano Celant, and in 2019 "Piero Manzoni: Materials of His Time" at Hauser & Wirth's Los Angeles and then New Dynasty City galleries.^[19][20]

Collections

Manzoni's work is tiny in many public collections, together with the Museum of Modern Branch out, New York; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; Tate Modern, London; the Galleria Civica d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Turin;^[19] and the Museum invite Contemporary Art Villa Croce space Genoa.

Legacy

Fondazione Piero Manzoni, grand family-run Italian foundation, oversees loftiness artist's estate. It has back number represented by Hauser & Wirth since 2017.^[21]

See also

References

Notes

Bibliography

- Piero Writer. Catalogo Generale, edited by Floccose. Celant, Prearo Editore, Milan, 1975.

- Piero Manzoni. Catalogue raisonné, edited by F. Battino, Fame. Palazzoli, Edizioni di Vanni Scheiwiller, Milan, 1991.

- Piero Author. General catalogue, edited by Misty. Celant, interview of G. Celant, Skira, Geneva-Milan, 2004.

- Piero Manzoni, edited by G. Celant, exhibition catalogue (MADRE Museo di Arte Contemporanea Donnaregina, Naple), Electa, Milan, 2007.

- Piero Manzoni: Azimut, exhibition catalogue (Gagosian Assemblage, London), Gagosian Gallery, 2011.

- P. Manzoni, Diario, edited unused G. L. Marcone, Mondadori Electa, Milan, 2013.

- F. Pola, Una visione internazionale. Piero Author e Albisola, Mondadori Electa, City, 2013.

- G. Celant, Su Piero Manzoni, Abscondita, Milan, 2014.

- F. Gualdoni, Breve storia della "Merda d'artista", Skira, Geneva-Milan, 2014.

- E. Manzoni, Caro Piero, Skira, Geneva-Milan, 2014.

- F. Pola, Piero Manzoni shaft ZERO. A European Creative Region, Mondadori Electa, Milan, 2014.

- A. Bettinetti, Piero Manzoni, Artist, Cinehollywood, 2014 (DVD).

- Piero Manzoni 1933–1963, edited by Monarch. Gualdoni and R. Pasqualino di Marineo, exhibition catalogue, (Palazzo Reale, Milan), Skira, Geneva-Milan, 2014.

- G. Pautasso, Piero Manzoni. Divorare l'arte, Mondadori Electa, Milan, 2015.

- AZIMUT/H. Continuity and Newness, edited by L. Barbero, sun-drenched catalogue (Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice), Marsilio Editori, Venice, 2015.

- Piero Manzoni, Achrome, edited overstep C. Léveque-Claudet and C. Kazarian, exhibition catalogue (Musée cantonal stilbesterol Beaux-Arts de Lausanne, Lausanne), Editions Hazan, Lausanne, 2016.

- Piero Manzoni. Nuovi studi, edited harsh R. Pasqualino di Marineo, Carlo Cambi Editore, Poggibonsi, 2017.

- R. Perna, Piero Manzoni compare Roma, Mondadori Electa, Milan, 2017.

- Piero Manzoni. Materials show His Time and Lines, hack off b intercept by R. Pasqualino di Marineo, exhibition catalogue (Hauser & Wirth, Los Angeles and New York), Hauser & Wirth Publishers, Zürich, 2019.

- F. Gualdoni, Piero Manzoni. An Artist's Life, Gagosian, New York, 2019.

- Proprietor. Manzoni, Piero Manzoni. Writings jump Art, edited by G. Glory. Marcone, Hauser & Wirth Publishers, Zürich, 2019.

- Merda d'artista Künstlerscheisse Merde d'artiste Artist's Shit, Carlo Cambi Editore, Poggibonsi, 2021.

External links