Aria, 1983-84
GPO-0528
Air
Two photo prints mounted between shaped plexiglas sheets, fractured glass sheet, steel cable
Hanging part 210 x 190 cm, broken glass sheet 90 x 90 cm
National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
Acquired in 1986, inventory no. NGA 86.1706.A-B
The angel must be arranged at a distance of at least 80-100 cm from the ceiling so that it wavers freely, and at a distance of around 180-200 cm from the ground. For the work to be enjoyed it must have enough breathing room all around it (at least 150 cm away from any other works or architectural elements) and viewers must be able to walk all around it without there being any visual interferences. The exhibition space must be at least 5.50 metres in height, and the ceiling must be such that a suspension cable can easily be attached to it.
A winged figure made up of a photographic collage with pieces from the reproductions of works by Antonio Canova – mounted between two plexiglas shapes hanging down from the ceiling on a steel cable – wavers in mid-air in an upside-down position. Set down on the ground instead is a broken glass sheet emphasizing the figure's precarious condition – angel or "idol"– in a free fall.
The title alludes to the condition of an unstable form, suspended in the air, and at the same time to the homonymous musical tune.
The tension between the Earth and the sky and the motif representing the fall include the work in a thematic area that is a distinctive feature of the artist's production from 1982 to 1984 (cf. by way of example La caduta di Icaro, 1982, GPO-0464, Place des Martyrs, 1983, GPO-0488, and L’idolo, 1983-84, GPO-0515).
The same subject was developed in three other variants, made between 1983 (GPO-0502, GPO-0529) and 1988 (GPO-0626).
• Figure: Antonio Canova, Genio funebre from the Sepolcro di Clemente XIII, 1787-92, marble, 820 x 630 x 254 cm, Basilica di San Pietro, Rome; reproduction from L’opera completa di Canova. Classici dell’arte 213 (Milan: Rizzoli, 1976), plate XI.
• Wings: Antonio Canova, Genius on the right of the Cenotafio degli Stuart, 1817-19, marble, 560 x 280 x 140 cm, Basilica di San Pietro, Roma; reproduction from L’opera completa di Canova. Classici dell’arte 213 (Milan: Rizzoli, 1976), plates LVIII and LIX.
| 1984-85 | Rivoli, Castello di Rivoli, Ouverture, 19 December 1984 - February 1985, cited in the checklist of exhibited works no. 74 p. 131 (as “Icaro” and incorrectly dated “1983”), repr. p. 62 (exhibition view). |
| 1987 | Canberra, Australian National Gallery at the University Drill Hall Gallery, Australian National University, Recent Acquisitions of International Contemporary Art 1972-1986, 11 April - 9 August, no catalogue. |
| • | Giulio Paolini, exhibition catalogue, Stuttgart, Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, 1986, vol. 4, repr. p. 42 (exhibition view Rivoli 1984-85). |
| • | Giulio Paolini. Casa di Lucrezio, 1981-84, visitor’s guide (Rivoli: Castello di Rivoli Museo d’arte contemporanea, 1987), repr. (exhibition view Rivoli 1984-85). |
| • | Giulio Paolini, exhibition catalogue, Rome, Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna (Milan-Rome: Arnoldo Mondadori Editore and De Luca Edizioni d’Arte, 1988), repr. no. 5 (exhibition view Rivoli 1984-85). |
| • | J. Lageira, “Ni le soleil ni la mort”, in Digraphe 48 (Paris), June, 1989, repr. p. 133 (incompletely dated “1983”, exhibition view Rivoli 1984-85). |
| • | Giulio Paolini. Von heute bis gestern / Da oggi a ieri, exhibition catalogue, Graz, Neue Galerie im Landesmuseum Joanneum (Ostfildern-Ruit: Cantz Verlag, 1998), repr. p. 266 (exhibition view Rivoli 1984-85). |
| • | Giulio Paolini. Tre per tre (ognuno è l’altro o nessuno), exhibition catalogue, Rome, Uccelliera di Villa Borghese (Rome: Electa Editrice, 2008), repr. n. pag. (exhibition view Rivoli 1984-85). |
| • | M. Disch, Giulio Paolini. Catalogo ragionato 1960-1999, vol. 2 (Milan: Skira editore, 2008), cat. no. 528 p. 540, repr. (exhibition view Rivoli 1984-85). |
| • | Paolo Pellion di Persano. La semplice storia di un fotografo, exhibition catalogue, Rivoli, Castello di Rivoli Museo d’Arte Contemporanea (Milan: Silvana Editoriale, 2024), repr. pp. 45, 163 (exhibition views Rivoli 1984-85). |
