Aria, 1983-88
GPO-0626
Air
Photo mounted between plexiglas shapes, steel cable, photo enlargement, plexiglas sheet
Hanging part 210 x 190 cm, plexiglas sheet 90 x 90 cm
Private collection, Puerto Rico
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. Lying on the ground instead is a colour photograph of a cloudy sky, held down by a plexiglas sheet, emphasizing the fact that the elements at play are inverted.
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 two previous variants, both made in 1984 (GPO-0528, GPO-0529).
• 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, Rome; reproduction from L’opera completa di Canova. Classici dell’arte 213 (Milan: Rizzoli, 1976), plates LVIII and LIX.
| 1988-89 | Rome, Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna, Giulio Paolini, 24 November 1988 - 26 February 1989, cited in the checklist of exhibited works p. 95 (incompletely dated “1983”), not repr. |
| 1993 | Rome, Palazzo delle Esposizioni, Tutte le strade portano a Roma?, 11 March - 26 April, repr. p. 193 (exhibition view Rome 1988-89). |
| 1998 | Graz, Neue Galerie im Landesmuseum Joanneum, Giulio Paolini. Von heute bis gestern / Da oggi a ieri, 4 April - 31 May, cited in the checklist of exhibited works no. 3 p. 181 (cited with incomplete date “1983”), not repr. |
| 1999 | Turin, GAM Galleria Civica d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Giulio Paolini. Da oggi a ieri, 8 May - 25 July, cited in the checklist of exhibited works no. 33 p. 38 (cited with incomplete date “1983”), col. repr. pp. 96-97 (exhibition view Graz 1998), 114, 116-117 (exhibition views). |
| 2006 | Turin, Fondazione Merz, Racconti d’Architettura, 13 May - 23 July, not repr. (erroneously exhibited as La caduta dell’angelo). |
| • | C. Christov-Bakargiev, Arte Povera (London: Phaidon Press Limited, 1999), col. repr. p. 139 (exhibition view Rome 1988-89). |
| • | Giulio Paolini. Premio Internazionale Koinè 2000 alla carriera, exhibition catalogue, Verona, Galleria d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea Palazzo Forti (Milan: Electa, 2001), col. repr. pp. 58-59 (exhibition view Turin 1999). |
| • | G. Paolini, Quattro passi. Nel museo senza muse (Turin: Giulio Einaudi editore, 2006), plate no. X (exhibition view Graz 1998). |
| • | M. Disch, Giulio Paolini. Catalogo ragionato 1960-1999, vol. 2 (Milan: Skira editore, 2008), cat. no. 626 p. 645, repr. (exhibition view Rome 1988-89). |
| • | M. Disch, Giulio Paolini. Catalogo ragionato 1960-1999 (Milan: Skira editore, 2008), cat. no. 626, repr. |
| • | E. Volpato, “L’Ile enchantée. La visione è cieca”, in E. Franz et al., Giulio Paolini. Vedo e non vedo. In tema 1 (Turin-Mantua: Fondazione Giulio e Anna Paolini and Corraini Edizioni, 2014), p. 72, col. repr. p. 74 (exhibition view Turin 1999). |
| • | Giulio Paolini. O.D.E., exhibition catalogue, Monforte d’Alba (Cuneo), Castello di Perno (Alba: Fondazione Mancini Carini, 2022), repr. pp. 158-159 (exhibition view Rome 1988, detail). |
| • | Giulio Paolini. A come Accademia, exhibition catalogue, Rome, Accademia Nazionale di San Luca (Rome: Gangemi Editore, 2023), repr. pp. 206-207 (exhibition view Rome 1988), col. repr. pp. 227 (exhibition view Graz 1998), 231 (exhibition view Turin 1999). |
