Press release
The first event, “Round the Clock”, opens 1 June
30 May 2011 – During the most anticipated artistic event of the year – the 54th International Art Exhibition, held in Venice from June to November – Spazio Thetis at the Venice Arsenal will host eight cultural events, making it a focal point for spectators to experience, rather than merely visit, the Biennale.
Visitors will be “watched” from Thetis' roof by Jan Fabre’s “L’uomo che misura le nuvole”, an exceptional work that for several years has been part of the permanent collection of this centre dedicated to contemporary art.
Spazio Thetis’ Biennale events begin at 12:00 on 1 June, with the opening of “Round the Clock”, a project curated by Martina Cavallarin that brings together the works of fifteen artists. The central theme of these works is the need to change our lives by adopting a new humanism that incorporates greater awareness of the places in which we live and increased respect for the planet’s energy and resources. The innovative radio art project “Sounds like Venice” will also begin on 1 June – for five days, the temporary installation ROMA RADIO ART FAIR will highlight the protagonists of the 54th International Art Exhibition, transmitting broadcasts, interviews, sounds and voices. The creation of a Radio Environment of this type is unprecedented in Italy and is an ideal project for Spazio Thetis, a venue that takes a strong interest in the relationship between contemporary art and technological research.
On 3 June, a special Italian Pavilion initiative celebrating 150 Years of Italian Unity, curated by Annamaria Orsini and entitled “Lo Stato Poetico", will open. Marco Nereo Rotelli will present his sculptures – works of poetry carved on book-shaped blocks of stone that come from throughout Italy. Blocks of travertine, Carrara marble, Istrian stone and Sicilian lava stone display verses by 26 great contemporary Italian poets and pay tribute to Edoardo Sanguineti and Mario Luzi. The works are part of an exploration, of both uncertainty and the sense of belonging to a multifaceted common culture, that begins with a “preview” in the Italian Pavilion (a work created with poet Andrea Zanzotto) and ends in Spazio Thetis’ gardens.
The second Italian artist exhibiting at Spazio Thetis is Renato Meneghetti, who is famous for his innovative X-rays. Visitors to Thetis can admire his “Sottopelle, il Cristo Morto del Mantegna”, an impressive artistic project directed by Alberto Bartalini in which large X-rays revealing the innermost dimension of the famous depiction of Christ are superimposed on Mantegna’s painting.
Thetis premises will also host a work by five artists from the Republic of Belorussia’s Pavilion – the "Kodex" project, curated by Mikhail Barazna. This single sculptural work in plastic and other materials, enhanced with tonal and colour graphics as well as new digital technologies, offers a modern interpretation of text as a form of artistic expression. The opening will take place at 12:30 on 3 June.
Also on 3 June, leading international figures will be at Thetis for the “Soul of Europe" conference to discuss “Culture, Economy and Social Responsibility”. The event, organized by Vittorio Urbani, will bring together experts from the European Parliament, universities, institutions and the world of finance and economics, and take advantage of the lively atmosphere in Venice and Spazio Thetis during the 54th International Art Exhibition.
Exhibition hours: Until 27 November 2011, Monday to Friday, from 10:00 to 18:00
Spazio Thetis
Castello Arsenale – Bacini stop
Lines 41-42, 51-52
Press Office
Knowledge Management Office and Press Office
Thetis SpA
tel. 041 2406111
fax 041 5210292
Contact: Giannandrea Mencini
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Michela Raccanello
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Anna Maria Toldo