a lyrical expression of a twisted torture;
the action of sacrifice meets a modern redemption;
lucio fontana’s crucifixes.
last year i had the opportunity to view a number of them at galerie karsten greve; in recent years i’ve been reprioritising my art visits, favouring galleries and private viewings again (blame it on allergies and art fairs).
fontana’s intimate ceramic works are a case in point; one needs to spend time and get close to them, an impossible feat in most museums today and although inconvenient, the trend in popular museums drifts towards appointed time slots and limited tickets for exactly this reason.
what happened outside the gallery had something to do with it; the decoration on a nearby building door had a traditional german motto ‘gott segne das ehrbare handwerk’, in its stylised brass work grille which could loosely be translated as: ‘god blesses the honorable craft’
it set an added tone of reverence for the work we were about to see. it is always interesting to notice how the environment and atmosphere of that which surrounds us work in on our experiences; whether contrary or sympathetic.
so with hours to spare and only one other visitor in the gallery, exploring these works was a rare and welcome pleasure. the glazed iconic components, like an abstracted italian baroque drama, become alive and play across the pieces with shadows and lustre. fontana’s handling of the medium truly brought about a movement of almost sensual energy combined with that spacial dimensionality which he so loved.
