Brancusi - Serra
dal 7/10/2011 al 3/4/2012
Segnalato da
Guggenheim Museum Press Office
7/10/2011
Brancusi - Serra
Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao
Retrospective. Organized by the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao in co-operation with the Fondation Beyeler Riehen/Basel, the show examines the connections between these two pioneers of sculpture through nearly fifty works, offering a unique overview of the period of over one hundred years in which modern sculpture developed. The exhibition will stress the effects produced by the variety of materials used, Brancusi availing himself at different times of marble, wood, cement, plaster, and bronze, while Serra has leant more towards steel, rubber, lead, and even neon tubes.
Brancusi - Serra
Organized in tandem with the Fondation Beyeler, this exhibition explores the meaning of the concepts of time and space in the oeuvres of Constantin Brancusi and Richard Serra, two of the finest sculptors of the 20th century. Some 30 sculptures by Brancusi, shown in themed groups to point up aspects of his artistic output, are to be placed against, and in dialogue with, thirty or so works by Richard Serra.
In both cases, the exhibition will stress the effects produced by the variety of materials used, Brancusi availing himself at different times of marble, wood, cement, plaster, and bronze, while Serra has leant more towards steel, rubber, lead, and even neon tubes.
The occasional juxtaposition of works by the two artists leaves room for individual areas devoted to works by each one, thus pointing up their similarities and differences, while also revealing the dynamic spatial power of the sculpture itself. The architecture of the two exhibition venues plays a major role, by bringing a third voice to the selection of sculptures on display.
Brancusi, born in Romania and a resident of Paris from 1904 onwards, reduced sculptural forms to their bare essentials and, in so doing, laid the foundations of abstract sculpture. Half a century later, American artist Richard Serra redefined the effects of sculpture by creating minimalist steel pieces, which literally draw the viewer into the work.
This show, a joint initiative of the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao and the Fondation Beyeler and curated by Oliver Wick, brings the work of these two artists face-to-face, allowing them to strike up a free, open dialogue. Both artists have made a dynamic, indelible mark on the history of art and forever altered the course of modern sculpture.
Image: Constantin Brancusi, L’oiseau, 1923-1947, Fondation Beyeler, Riehen/Basel
Guggenheim Museum
Avenida Abandoibarra - Bilbao
Hours: Tuesday to Sunday: from 10 am to 08 pm
Admission: 11.00€, concessions 6.50€