Jannis Kounellis
dal 15/11/2012 al 25/1/2013
Segnalato da
15/11/2012
Jannis Kounellis
Blain|Southern, Berlin
An exhibition of new and recent works. Renowned for his pivotal role in the development of the Arte Povera movement in the 1960s, over the last 50 years Kounellis has continued to redefine artistic practice through his original use of materials.
Blain|Southern Berlin presents an exhibition of new and recent works by Jannis Kounellis from
17 November to 26 January 2013. Renowned for his pivotal role in the development of the
Arte Povera movement in the 1960s, over the last 50 years Kounellis has continued to redefine
artistic practice through his original use of materials.
His works, a mixture of painting, collages, installations, ‘environments', performances and
theatrical shows, are made of everyday materials, such as soil, coal, stones, sacks, fire, live
animals, bed frames and doorways, as well as objets trouvés. These are imbued with dramatic
power, evoking history, memory and the reality of our present day experience, expressing the
underlying tensions within contemporary society, and the multiplicity and fragmentation of its
language.
In this century Kounellis has developed an increasingly architectural vocabulary, typified by
the labyrinth he constructed in the main hall of Berlin’s Neue Nationalgalerie for his 2008
retrospective. Working in dialogue with the Mies van der Rohe designed building, the structure
served as a complete environment in which to exhibit examples of his earlier works. His
exhibition at Blain|Southern will be in a similar vein, with sculptural installations that respond
to the gallery’s vast, post-industrial space.
Jannis Kounellis was born in 1936 in Piraeus, Greece. In 1956 he moved to Rome and enrolled
in the Accademia di Belle Arti. While still a student he had his first solo show, titled L’alfabeto
di Kounellis, at the Galleria la Tartaruga, Rome, in 1960. Kounellis has since exhibited all over
the world and is represented in major museum collections internationally. From the 1970s
until today, his work has been shown extensively internationally. He has taken part in seven
editions of the Venice Biennale since 1972. His work was also featured at the Documenta in
Kassel in 1972 and 1982. In the last decade Kounellis has staged major exhibitions at Galleria
Nazionale d’Arte Moderna in Rome (2002), Museo d’Arte Contemporanea Donnaregina in
Naples (2006), Neuenational Galerie in Berlin (2008), Herning Museum of Contemporary Art
(2010), Today Art Museum, Beijing (2011), National Centre for Contemporary Art, Moscow
(2011) and Museum of Cycladic Art, Athens (2012), among others. The artist lives and works
in Rome.
Image: Untitled, 2012, Iron, coats, string. Photo: Christian Glaeser.
Press contact London
BLAIN|SOUTHERN
Mark Inglefield London W1S 1AL P: +44 (0)207 4934492 E: mark@blainsouthern.com
Press contact Berlin
artpress – Ute Weingarten Marie Skov Elisabethkirchstraße 15 10115 Berlin P: +49 (0)30 48496350 E: artpress@uteweingarten.de
Press Preview: Thursday 15 November from 11 am to 1 pm.
The artist will be present.
Accreditation kindly requested until Tuesday 13 November 2012 at artpress@uteweingarten.de or + 49 30 48496350
Private View: Friday 16 November 6-9 pm.
Blain|Southern
Potsdamer Strasse 77-87 10785 Berlin
Hours: Opening to the public on 30th April 2011
Tuesday to Saturday: 11 - 18
free admission