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Dal Colore Al Segno O I Z A ARTE STUDIO INVERNIZZI DAL COLORE AL SEGNO. SULLE TRACCE DI UN’ESTETICA RELAZIONALE GIORGIO VERZOTTI S D U L A L E L T R A C C C O A E a D L r G t I O e i U o S r N g t R u i ’ o E d S V i E o T e E r I n z T A o v I e C t L t r i A n i z R z S E i E L A G Z I O N N A O L E DAL COLORE AL SEGNO SULLE TRACCE DI UN’ESTETICA RELAZIONALE a cura di Giorgio Verzotti 3 ottobre - 3 dicembre 2002 A arte Studio Invernizzi Via D. Scarlatti 12 20124 Milano Tel. Fax 02 29402855 [email protected] www.aarteinvernizzi.com www.artnet.com GIANNI ASDRUBALI ALAN CHARLTON HELMUT DORNER HELMUT FEDERLE BERNARDFRIZE PINOPINELLI GÜNTER UMBERG Dal colore al segno. Sulle tracce di un’estetica relazionale Si parla oggi di una estetica relazionale come del apparente mancanza di relazioni col mondo esterno. tratto distintivo che contrassegna i lavori artistici In realtà l’opera raramente smette di relazionarsi più significativi della nostra contemporaneità. con l’altro da sé, e lo vediamo nella storia del L’opera si pone, in questa prospettiva, al centro di monocromo che gli anni Sessanta e Settanta un insieme di relazioni di senso che concorrono hanno riattualizzato dopo le premesse nate in a determinarla, a partire dal punto di vista del- seno alle avanguardie storiche. l’osservatore per finire con le oggettive condizio- Al pari della griglia, il monocromo può essere ni di visibilità dell’opera stessa. L’opera insomma visto come un’icona tipica del Modernismo, vale è una struttura aperta all’interazione di fattori a dire di quello sforzo prometeico atto non solo transeunti, non è più allacciata ad una definizione a unificare l’arte e la vita ma anche a farsi discor- perentoria di sé. so di verità, insomma ad incarnare tutte le utopie Tali osservazioni colgono perfettamente la natu- di inveramento dell’assoluto che hanno agitato ra di molto lavoro artistico di oggi, e risultano molta astrazione da Malevic in poi. convincenti in tutti i loro postulati, tranne che Il monocromo coniugato all’interno delle corren- nelle premesse da cui partono. Queste ultime ti riflessive, analitiche della pittura americana ed colgono un dato di novità nell’apertura testuale europea degli scorsi decenni ha propriamente di oggi e la contrappongono evidentemente alla vissuto direttamente il passaggio dai cieli dell’asso- chiusura nelle asserzioni di autonomia e autore- luto alla terra delle relatività, e questo con gran- ferenzialità di molta arte del recente passato. de coerenza. Così, l’unico contraltare che possia- Delineata una genealogia, essa andrebbe verifica- mo davvero contrapporre alle estetiche relazio- ta nei passaggi, nei nodi su cui si regge. Ebbene, nali di oggi è (forse) la tensione ontologica di Ad alla ricerca di questo assoluto che nel passato Reinhardt col suo “ultimo quadro possibile”, recente, a partire dal cuore delle ricerche degli unica occasione in cui davvero il colore nero in anni Settanta, avrebbe dominato i pensieri degli pittura ha significato l’assorbimento in Uno della artisti, difficilmente troviamo traccia. molteplicità, di ogni relatività fenomenica. Con il In altri termini, viene da pensare che tutte le este- nero di Frank Stella le cose cambiano già, come tiche frequentate nei decenni appena trascorsi è noto. siano state “relazionali” perché tutte mettevano Questa mostra tenta di fondare una genealogia in discussione, anziché confermare, la centralità per sommi capi, una piccola storia che si inquadra dell’opera, il suo compiaciuto chiudersi in sé, in in quella più generale, dove quel passaggio si una totale e totalizzante autosufficienza. manifesta come continuità di una riflessione che Perfino nell’ambito minimalista il rapporto con lo coinvolge anche le generazioni più giovani, non spazio espositivo indebolisce radicalmente l’atte- senza mutamenti di rotta ma nel rispetto, se non stato forte di identità dell’opera, anche se vale nell’osservanza, delle premesse. sempre l’osservazione ironica di Vito Acconci Leggiamo qui il passaggio da una poetica del quando paragona, in un’intervista, il misterioso e colore (o del non-colore, che è lo stesso) ad una mistico monolito attorno a cui si agitano le scim- poetica del segno, da una retorica della contiguità mie in 2001 odissea nello spazio di Kubrick alla delle figure ad un’altra basata sulla commistione, scultura minimal,altrettanto“calata dall’alto”nella sua da un’istanza di assenza ad una di presenza del 7 soggetto, nella fedeltà però ad un assunto fonda- di segmenti simili che nella molteplicità assumono appartiene a tutt’altra natura. Essa si origina da materialità del quadro, al quale concede l’integrità mentale, il rapporto fra l’opera e lo spazio. intensità espressiva, o energia. L’intensità è data dal elementi figurali che nella composizione emergo- tuttavia sottraendo pathos all’atto pittorico. Se il È lo spazio in cui si colloca che determina la visi- colore acceso e dalla disposizione imprevedibile, no in forma di schemi ricavati per estrema ridu- quadro ricompare, la sua portata codificante bilità dell’opera, vale a dire la sua struttura. spesso molto ardita, dell’opera sulla parete. Una zione dai dati dell’esperienza, che la trascendono viene indebolita con la scelta del fregio, di una Quest’ultima è postulata per interagire con l’am- volta “allestita” a muro, però, quest’opera nata recandone però sempre una traccia mnestica. disposizione nello spazio che ricorre spesso nel biente, col vuoto metaforico e ad un tempo dalla neutralità di un gesto integralmente costrut- Molte delle opere di Federle inoltre, fra cui quelle lavoro dell’artista e che ancora una volta relati- reale rappresentato dalla parete e dallo spazio tivo e ripetitivo, trasforma lo spazio circostante esposte in questa occasione, accentuano l’abban- vizza il codice alle manifestazioni fenomeniche espositivo. Del resto, l’opera stessa si instaura su investendolo della propria forza. dono delle istanze autoreferenziali per farsi lette- dell’ambiente. D’altra parte le procedure pittori- un bilico fra ostensione di una pura realtà mate- Una analoga considerazione si può fare per il ralmente “altro”, per porsi, come succede negli che a cui Frize si dedica con ingegno risentono riale e messa in opera di una funzione simbolica: lavoro di Günter Umberg. La stessa attenzione esemplari del presente ciclo pittorico, come le let- della critica mossa alla pittura come sistema da da un lato essa “è quello che è, dice quello che minuziosa alla fattura dell’opera, creata strato a tere di un utopistico alfabeto iconico, ogni dipinto precedenti quali Buren,Toroni o Mosset. dice”, come recita il titolo di un saggio in catalo- strato come corpo fragile e quasi intangibile, si corrispondente alla lettera di un linguaggio possi- Anche qui come nei casi citati l’atto pittorico go della Biennale di Venezia dedicata agli anni combina con una analoga intenzione di animare bilmente universale. perde di enfasi, viene regolamentato e ridotto Settanta, dall’altro essa fa di più, indica e allude. lo spazio con la presenza dell’opera dislocata Le stesure in Federle lasciano trasparire le tracce ad un atto semplice, anonimo e ripetitivo ma L’istanza dello spazio dunque induce l’opera a secondo non canoniche modalità, così da inter- della gestualità, il suo linguaggio si sottrae al non per questo meno creativo: nel caso del più mutare di funzione: se non rappresenta, l’opera venire dinamicamente anche sul fattore della per- modello dell’assenza per far emergere piuttosto i giovane artista francese, esso si può per esem- d’arte neppure si limita a presentare, ma appun- cezione e da integrarlo attivamente nel processo moti pulsionali, osservazione che vale a maggior pio risolvere nell’applicazione sulla tela delle pel- to allude all’altro da sé per così dire incorporan- di significazione. ragione per Helmut Dorner. Nella recente pro- licole di colore solidificate nei barattoli di verni- dolo, cioè aprendo la propria unità e integrità allo Le tendenze analitiche più interessanti insomma duzione del pittore le stesure diventano sovrap- ce lasciati aperti. spazio.Vedo in questo, e l’ho anche già detto, una non hanno mai, per usare un termine forte, feticiz- posizioni di dense lacche colorate che creano Gianni Asdrubali invece appiattisce il dipinto e gli centralità e una eredità di Lucio Fontana. zato la pittura e il suo ambito espressivo ma l’han- chiazze cromatiche sovrapposte e interagenti, in sottrae per questo il supporto del telaio, per inne- In Alan Charlton l’opera si presenta dissezionata, no sempre confrontata con il suo altro, e l’analisi si una vera e propria retorica della commistione. A stare con lo spazio un rapporto ancora diverso. La frammentata in elementi che se ricostruiscono è qualificata proprio in questo confronto: difficile questa densità materica della pittura si contrap- tela qui viene intagliata, conformata per assecon- idealmente il formato-codice del rettangolo ne dunque trovare un’arte più “relazionale” di questa. pone però l’evanescenza o l’immaterialità dei dare l’andamento, le volute, del groviglio di segni sanzionano d’altra parte la perdita irrimediabile. Un’analoga volontà di confronto è presente in supporti in plexiglass, in modo che l’opera si apra che l’artista ha generato e che raffigura in una pro- L’ordine in cui gli elementi si dispongono sulla quelle ricerche pittoriche astratte che hanno virtualmente allo spazio reale anche senza dirom- liferazione potenzialmente infinita. Ogni opera parete, la luce naturale che interagisce con la segnato il passaggio fra gli anni Settanta e gli pere l’integrità del supporto. diventa così un microuniverso di energie contrap- molteplice gamma delle stesure grigie, il movi- Ottanta, e che sono emerse a metà del nuovo Un tratto comune di alcuni di questi dipinti, di poste, significate nella scelta di due soli colori mento dell’osservatore che “posiziona” ogni volta decennio anche come reazione all’imperante figu- alcune fra queste procedure, è la scelta di instal- come di due polarità primarie in eterna tensione.
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