Proteo (II), 1971

Archive number

GPO-0226

English title

Proteus (II)

Technique

Plaster casts, white plinth

Dimensions

Two casts 20 x 15 x 30 cm each, plinth 120 x 40 x 40 cm

Inscriptions by the artist

• 3/3: signed, titled, and dated on the verso of one of the two feet, upper right corner: “Giulio Paolini / Proteo (II) 1971”

Edition details

The work was executed in a numbered edition of three.

Collection

1/3	Klassik Stiftung Weimar, Weimar
2/3	Private collection
3/3	Private collection

Acquisitions and loans

1/3	Acquired in 1993, inventory no. PM O 5
2/3	From April 2019 on loan at Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein, Vaduz

Description

Proteo (II) includes two identical plaster casts of a right foot arranged “in symmetry that is nominal, not natural",1 the artist says.
Proteo, Proteo (II) and Proteo (III) (GPO-0225, GPO-0226, GPO-0227) constitute for the artist three episodes on the same theme, each of which enacts a process of transformation: in the first of the three, the physiognomy dissolves in the material substance it is made up of; in the second, a foot is doubled rather than finding its anatomical complement; in the third, two hands are placed one above the other without ever being able to coincide.
Akin to the photograph and the drawing, the plaster cast, used here for the second time after Elegia (1969, GPO-0196), is made manifest as a device of reproduction, not so much to define an image as to question the precarious and flawed dimension of the language itself.

1 G. Paolini in G. Celant, Giulio Paolini (New York: Sonnabend Press, 1972), p. 97 (revised translation, republished in Giulio Paolini 1960-1972, edited by G. Celant Milan: Fondazione Prada, 2003), p. 298), reprint (Cinisello Balsamo: Silvana Editoriale, 2019), p. 97.

Exhibitions

1971	Cologne, Galerie Paul Maenz, Giulio Paolini, 3-22 December; edition 1/3.
1972	Turin, Galleria Notizie, Giulio Paolini, from 26 January; edition 2/3.
1977	Mannheim, Mannheimer Kunstverein, Giulio Paolini, 31 July - 28 August, repr. p. 45, commentary by P. Maenz p. 42; edition 3/3.
1981	Cologne, Rheinhallen der Kölner Messe, Westkunst: Zeitgenössische Kunst seit 1939, 30 May - 16 August, cited in the checklist of exhibited works no. 821 p. 487, repr. p. 487; edition 1/3.
1983	Frankfurt, Frankfurter Kunstverein, Steinernes Haus am Römerberg, Kunst nach 45, 7 October - 27 November, cited in the checklist of exhibited works p. 420, repr. p. 278; edition 3/3.
1988	Munich, Haus der Kunst, Mythos Italien. Wintermärchen Deutschland, 24 March - 29 May, cited in the checklist of exhibited works no. 163 p. 285, repr. p. 252, commentary by C. Boess p. 253; edition 1/3.
1989	London, Royal Academy of Arts, Italian Art in the 20th Century. Painting and Sculpture 1980-1988, 14 January - 9 April, cited in the checklist of exhibited works no. 202 p. 421, not repr.; edition 1/3.
1993	London, Hayward Gallery, Gravity & Grace. The changing condition of Sculpture 1965-1975, 21 January - 14 March, repr. p. 75; edition 2/3.
1994	Weimar, Kunstsammlungen zu Weimar, Schlossmuseum, Der Fürst schmollt. Moderne trifft Klassik: Werke aus der Sammlung Paul Maenz, 10 June - 31 July, no catalogue; edition 1/3.
1995	Venice, Giardini di Castello, Padiglione Italia, Biennale di Venezia: XLVI Esposizione Internazionale d’Arte. Identità e alterità. Figure del corpo 1895-1995 (section: Impronte del corpo e della mente), 11 June - 15 October, cited in the checklist of exhibited works no. IX 39 p. 512, repr. p. 533; edition 2/3.
1996	Weimar, Weimarer Schloss, 27 September - 27 October, displayed alongside the solo exhibition Giulio Paolini. Impressions graphiques at the Kunsthaus Apolda Avantgarde, Weimar, are a group of works by Paolini belonging to the Paul Maenz Collection and to the Kunstsammlungen zu Weimar, no catalogue; edition 1/3.
1999	Weimar, Neues Museum, Auffrischender Wind aus wechselnden Richtungen. Internationale Avantgarde seit 1960: Die Sammlung Paul Maenz, 1 January - 31 December, repr. no. 78 p. 115, catalogue entry by H. Dickel; edition 1/3.
2001-02	London, Tate Modern, Zero to Infinity: Arte Povera 1962-1972, 31 May - 19 August, touring to: Minneapolis, Walker Art Center, 13 October 2001 - 13 January 2002; Los Angeles, MOCA Museum of Contemporary Art, 28 April - 22 September 2002; Washington D.C., The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, 23 October 2002 - 12 January 2003, cited in the checklist of exhibited works no. 104 p. 358, repr. p. 282; edition 2/3.
2003	Milan, Fondazione Prada, Giulio Paolini 1960-1972, 29 October - 18 December, cited in the checklist of exhibited works p. 404, repr. p. 357; edition 2/3.
2009	Florence, Museo degli Argenti, Palazzo Pitti, Memorie dell’Antico nell’arte del Novecento, 14 March - 12 July, cat. no. 68 (with incorrect dimensions and incorrect indication of the ownership of the edition 3/3), entry by M. Bertozzi, repr. p. 205; edition 2/3.
2010-11	Vaduz, Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein, Che fare? Arte povera – Die historischen Jahre, 7 May - 5 September, touring to: Linz, Lentos Kunstmuseum, 18 February 29 May 2011, cited in the checklist of exhibited works p. 372, repr. p. 206, col. repr. p. 207 (exhibition view Vaduz), entry by M. Disch p. 206 (idem in the English edition); in the exhibition guide (Vaduz) cited in the checklist of exhibited works no. 18 p. 5, not repr.; edition 2/3.
2022	Milan, NP Viewing room, Lettura classica, 17 November - 22 December, no catalogue; edition 3/3.
2023	Padua, NP – Artlab, Changing Shapes, 21 October - 25 November, no catalogue; edition 3/3.

Artist’ writings

•	G. Paolini in G. Celant, Giulio Paolini (New York: Sonnabend Press, 1972), p. 96; republished in Giulio Paolini 1960-1972, edited by G. Celant (Milan: Fondazione Prada, 2003), p. 298; reprint (Cinisello Balsamo: Silvana Editoriale, 2019).

Bibliography

•	Paul Maenz Köln. Jahresbericht 1971 (Cologne: Galerie Paul Maenz, 1971), pp. 55-58, repr. pp. 56 (exhibition view Cologne 1971), 57.
•	G. Celant, Giulio Paolini (New York: Sonnabend Press, 1972), p. 96, repr. no. 86 pp. 94-95; republished in Giulio Paolini 1960-1972, edited by G. Celant (Milan: Fondazione Prada, 2003), pp. 298, 324; reprint (Cinisello Balsamo: Silvana Editoriale, 2019).
•	T. Trini, “Giulio Paolini, un decennio. Parte prima: Il vero e il visibile”, in Data 3, nos. 7-8 (Milan), Summer, 1973, repr. p. 65.
•	M. Fagiolo, “Glossario”, in Giulio Paolini (Parma: Università di Parma, Centro Studi e Archivio della Comunicazione, 1976), p. 25, repr. no. 135.
•	A.C. Quintavalle, “Paolini: scritture”, in Giulio Paolini, op. cit. (Parma: 1976), p. 56.
•	G. Celant, “Une histoire de l’art contemporain en Italie”, in Art press 37 (Paris), May, 1980, repr. on cover.
•	Paul Maenz Köln 1970-1980. Der Blick zurück ist ein Blick auf die Gegenwart und/oder Die Wahrheit hat viele Brüste (Cologne: Galerie Paul Maenz, 1981), repr. p. 45.
•	Identité Italienne. L’art en Italie depuis 1959, edited by G. Celant (Paris-Florence: Centre Georges Pompidou and Centro Di, 1981), repr. p. 502.
•	W.M. Faust, “Et quid amabo: Notizen zu Arbeiten von Giulio Paolini”, in Giulio Paolini. Del bello intelligibile, exhibition catalogue, Bielefeld, Kunsthalle Bielefeld, 1982, p. 20, repr. p. 21.
•	Avanguardia Transavanguardia, exhibition catalogue, Rome, Mura Aureliane da Porta Metronia a Porta Latina (Milan: Electa, 1982), repr. no. 143 p. 91.
•	Casa di Dedalo 1 (Parma), October, 1983, repr. p. 27.
•	Giulio Paolini, vol. Images/Index (Villeurbanne: Le Nouveau Musée, 1984), repr. pp. 112-113.
•	H. Friedel, “Giulio Paolini. Der doppelte Blick”, in Der Traum des Orpheus. Mythologie in der italienischen Gegenwartskunst 1967 bis 1984, exhibition catalogue, Munich, Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus, 1984, p. 73, repr. p. 80.
•	A. Mammì, I. Panicelli, “Giulio Paolini. Bibliografia”, in Giulio Paolini. La Casa di Lucrezio, exhibition catalogue, Spoleto, Palazzo Rosari Spada (Casalecchio di Reno: Grafis Edizioni, 1984), p. 15, repr. p. 17; republished in Markus Lüpertz, Giulio Paolini: figure, colonne, finestre, exhibition catalogue, Rivoli, Castello di Rivoli, 1986, p. 79, not repr.
•	G. Paolini, “Trionfo della rappresentazione”, in Furor 12 (Geneva), October, 1984, repr. no. 3.
•	Giulio Paolini, exhibition catalogue, Stuttgart, Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, 1986, vol. 2, repr. p. 27.
•	G. Paolini, Suspense. Breve storia del vuoto in tredici stanze (Florence: Hopeful Monster editore, 1988), repr. pp. 110-111.
•	W.M. Faust, “Die Galerie als Erzählung”, in Paul Maenz Köln 1970-1980-1990. Eine Avantgarde-Galerie und die Kunst unserer Zeit / An Avant-Garde Gallery and the Art of Our Time, edited by G. de Vries (Cologne: DuMont Buchverlag, 1991), pp. 27, 33, repr. pp. 32 (exhibition view Cologne 1971), 33.
•	Italiana. From Arte Povera to Transavanguardia, exhibition catalogue, Yokohama, Nicaf 3 (Milan: Fondazione Mudima Edizioni, 1994), repr. p. 201.
•	M. Bouisset, Arte Povera (Paris: Éditions du Regard, 1994), repr. p. 86.
•	P. Ardenne, Art: l'âge contemporain. Une histoire des arts plastiques à la fin du XXe siècle (Paris: Éditions du Regard, 1997), col. repr. p. 78.
•	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. 235.
•	M. Unterdörfer, Die Rezeption der Antike in der Postmoderne: der Gipsabguss in der italienischen Kunst der siebziger und achtziger Jahre (Weimar: VDG Verlag und Datenbank für Geisteswissenschaften, 1998), p. 36, cat. no. 25 p. 140, not repr.
•	Die Sammlung Paul Maenz Neues Museum Weimar. Band I: Objekte, Bilder, Installationen (Weimar-Ostfildern-Ruit: Neues Museum and Hatje Cantz Verlag, 1999), repr. p. 115 cat. no. 78, with entry by H. Dickel.
•	M. Dalla Bernardina, “Les autoportraits de Giulio Paolini”, in Ligeia 29-32 (Paris), October 1999 - June 2000, pp. 8-9, not repr.
•	R. Krüger, Nach der Antike. Studien zur Antikenrezeption in der bildenden Kunst seit 1967 (Essen: Klartext, 2004), pp. 61-62, repr. no. 5 p. 162.
•	A. Zevi, Peripezie del dopoguerra nell’arte italiana (Turin: Giulio Einaudi editore, 2005), p. 342, not repr.
•	M. Disch, Giulio Paolini. Catalogo ragionato 1960-1999, vol. 1 (Milan: Skira editore, 2008), cat. no. 226 p. 235, repr.
•	Giulio Paolini. A come Accademia, exhibition catalogue, Rome, Accademia Nazionale di San Luca (Rome: Gangemi Editore, 2023), repr. p. 129 (exhibition view Cologne 1971), col. repr. pp. 238-239 (exhibition view Milan 2003).

Entry by Maddalena Disch, 28/02/2025