An exhibition in Milan recalls the association between Vincenzo Agnetti, Enrico Castellani and Piero Manzoni

From October 23, 2019 to January 18, 2020, the BUILDING space in Milan presents the exhibition Vincenzo Agnetti - Self-Portraits Portraits. Writing - Enrico Castellani Piero Manzoni curated by Giovanni Iovane. The exhibition, divided into the two sections Autoritratti Rit ratti and Scrivere, focuses on a selection of works by the artist that include not only his famous “felts,” but also many other works including Identikit (1973), Autotelefonata (No) (1972) and Elisabetta d ’ England (1976), in which the artist experiments with the portrait genre in an original way, and the famous When I Saw Myself I Wasn’t There (1971), dedicated to the theme of the self-portrait with The Flower Player (1982), his last unfinished work.

Agnetti had formed a cultural partnership with Enrico Castellani and Piero Manzoni, contributing since the 1960s to the critical investigation of their artistic work with texts characterized by his peculiar writing style, somewhere between critical analysis and poetry.

In the section entitled Scrivere, a selection of works by Castellani and Manzoni related to Agnetti’s research are thus presented, starting with Litografia originale (1968), in which on one side (recto) is Castellani’s work and on the other (verso) a text with diagram by Vincenzo Agnetti. By Piero Manzoni, on the other hand, we find “tables of ascertainment” and "lines," as well as works pertaining to the theme of the portrait, including Magic Base (1961), a model of “living sculpture” with an obvious performative character.

Also part of the exhibition project are performances by Italo Zuffi, created by the artist for this exhibition, to activate, by emphasizing the performative aspect of Agnetti’s work, a contemporary reflection on the concepts of portrait and translation.

Also for this project BUILDING proposes a public extension of the exhibition in the city of Milan. Some of Vincenzo Agnetti’s most mystical works, such as Ritratto di Dio (1970) or Apocalisse (1974), will be exhibited in some rooms of the Chiostri di Sant’Eustorgio.

A calendar of lectures and in-depth seminars will accompany the course of the exhibition. The catalog, published by BUILDING, will include texts by, among others, Giovanni Iovane, curator of the exhibition, Marco Meneguzzo, Gaspare Luigi Marcone, Rosalia Pasqualino di Marineo, Federico Sardella, Marco Senaldi, and an unpublished interview by Tommaso Trini with the artist, dating back to the 1970s.

The exhibition was organized in collaboration with theVincenzo Agnetti Archive, the Enrico Castellani Foundation, the Piero Manzoni Foundation, and with the support of the Osart Gallery, the La Gaia Collection and private collections.

The figure of Vincenzo Agnetti (Milan, 1926-1981) is central to the international panorama of conceptual art in the 1970s; a poet, critic, and “teller,” he matured his autonomous path from the time of his friendship with Enrico Castellani and Piero Manzoni, but it is with 1966-1967 that he turned to the production of works - such as the Bakelite “axioms” or the felt “portraits” - and actions in which the concepts of word, territory, “translation,” relationship, singularity and universality of communication are fundamental.

For all information you can the official BUILDING website.

Pictured: Vincenzo Agnetti, Self-Portrait (1971; Gray felt with gray painted lettering, 120 x 80 cm). Ph. credit: Agnetti Archive / BUILDING, Milan, Italy.

Source: press release

An exhibition in Milan recalls the association between Vincenzo Agnetti, Enrico Castellani and Piero Manzoni

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