Permanent Illusion

For the 5th edition of BIENALSUR, Antonio Della Guardia presents two interventions for the city of Zagreb. The windows of the Istituto Italiano di Cultura host 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. 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 Istituto, 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.