Prima Materia

Arte Domani, Spoleto, Italy 1992

The walls of a tall vaulted chamber were clad in seed and clay, transforming the white monastic simplicity into a lush, growing environment.

An entire ancient olive tree with a bulbous root system, recovered from a grove being cut down to make way for mechanised production of olives, was placed at the far end of the room, opposite the natural light source.  In turn, this source cast a shadow of the tree onto the grass walls. Whilst the created environment exuded an atmosphere of calm serenity, it also contained an overwhelming sense of displacement. This can be exemplified by the artist’s continuing exploration of polarity reversal, a theme concerning the introduction of natural exterior elements to the interior.

Commissioned and presented by Incontri Internazionali d’Arte, galleria d’Arte Moderna – Comune di Spoleto

Arte Domani 1992, Punti di Vista, Spoleto, Italy. International group show curated by Maria Ausilia Binda, Agnes Kohlmeyer, Sylvie Parent.