Opening: Saturday, November 29th, 12 p.m
Through performances, drawings, and site-specific works, Antonio Della Guardia investigates and deconstructs the internalized forms of relating to urban space and to the time of production. In recent years, the artist has designed and proposed actions that involve the body and question it in unconventional, imaginative ways, with the aim of freeing it from the constraints imposed by a society marked by self-demand and constant productivity.
For the 5th edition of BIENALSUR, Antonio Della Guardia presents two interventions for the city of Zagreb. In the first-floor hall of the Oktogon, the new exhibition space of the NMMU, he presents the site-specific sculptural project Permanent Illusion: fragments of pyrite, a mineral with distinctive reflective properties, are placed alongside Polaroid photographs depicting authoritarian gestures of state leaders from different nations. The close-up images of the portrayed hands reflect on the metallic surface of the lithic bodies, transforming into double, new and imaginative forms. The deconstructed gestures of the powerful men and women rhythmically punctuate the round table occupying the center of the room, an element directly associated with professional contexts or economic transactions. Commonly called “fool’s gold” due to its bright, golden color, pyrite was historically mistaken for gold by inexperienced prospectors who, in their futile attempts to sell it, were later disappointed by its low value. The misunderstanding became proverbial, such that pyrite still symbolizes false riches and dashed hopes. Placed on the conference table, the mineral thus becomes a metaphor for managerial success understood as mere bait, a tempting yet illusory promise of future happiness. A few meters from the Oktogon, in the public space, the artist presents For Practices of a New Reality, a series of written performative exercises through phrases and drawings that cover the scaffolding of the NMMU, currently under restoration.