Luigi Ontani
Encyclopedia
Luigi Ontani is an Italian painter and sculptor, a multifaceted artist who expresses himself through various artistic forms.
when he became known for his tableau vivant
s: photographed and videotaped performances in which he presented himself in different ways: from Pinocchio
to Dante
, Saint Sebastian to Baccus
. These displays of actionism
(different from Viennese Actionism
, to which Hermann Nitsch
is associated) verge on kitsch
and raise personal narcissism to a higher level.
Throughout his long career Ontani has expressed his creativity and poetics through the use of many different techniques: from his "oggetti pleonastici" (1965–1969), made in plaster
, to the "stanza delle similitudini," made with objects cut in corrugated fiberboard. He has often anticipated the use of techniques subsequently adopted by other artists: his first Super 8
films were made between 1969 and 1972. With his work "Ange Infidele" (1968) Ontani begins to experiment with photography
. From the beginning his photography has been characterized by some particular elements: the subject is always the artist himself, who uses his own body and face to personify historic, mythological, literary and popular themes; the chosen formats are usually miniature and gigantography, and each work is considered unique. From the late 1960s on are "Teofania" (1969), "San Sebastiano nel bosco di Calvenzano, d'apres Guido Reni" Tentazione," "Meditazione, d'apres de la Tour," "Bacchino" (1970), "Tell il Giovane," "Raffaello," "Dante," " Pinocchio" (1972), "Lapsus Lupus," the diptych "EvAdamo" (1973), "Leda e il Cigno" (1974), "I grilli e i tappeti volanti" that will be followed by other "d'apres," and the first Indian cycle "En route vers l'Inde, d'apres Pierre Lotti." His first artistic photography has a historic importance because it anticipates a phenomenon that will be widespread and popular from the 1980s.
While working on his photographs Ontani began to make his first tableaux vivants. From 1969 to 1989 the artist made around 30 of these exhibitions, again foreshadowing the so-called interactive installations, which are based on the mixture of various technologies. With this same attitude he has created works in papier-mâché, glass, wood (he has made numerous masks, especially on Bali, with Pule wood) and, more rarely, in bronze, marble, and fabric. He has also made notorious works in ceramic, thanks to the cooperation with Bottega Gatti of Faenza
, Venera Finocchiaro in Rome
, and the Terraviva laboratory of Vietri: some of them are his "pineal" masks, the "Ermestetiche," and the last great works such as "GaneshaMusa" and "NapoleonCentaurOntano."
Ontani has not used all these different techniques as ends in themselves but as occasions to experiment new possibilities and formulate new variations of the themes and subjects that interest him the most: his own "transhistoric" travel through myth, the mask, the symbol and iconographic representation. He has exhibited his works in some of the most important museums and galleries of the world, from the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
to the Pompidou Centre, the Museo Reina Sofía to the Frankfurter Kunstverein
. He has also participated in several editions of the Venice
, Sydney, and Lyon biennales. Recently he has had three important retrospectives at the MoMA
(2001), the SMAK in Ghent (2003–2004) and the MAMbo
in Bologna (2008).
Biography and work
Ontani began his artistic career in the 1970s1970s
File:1970s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: US President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office after the Watergate scandal in 1974; Refugees aboard a US naval boat after the Fall of Saigon, leading to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975; The 1973 oil...
when he became known for his tableau vivant
Tableau vivant
Tableau vivant is French for "living picture." The term describes a striking group of suitably costumed actors or artist's models, carefully posed and often theatrically lit. Throughout the duration of the display, the people shown do not speak or move...
s: photographed and videotaped performances in which he presented himself in different ways: from Pinocchio
Pinocchio
The Adventures of Pinocchio is a novel for children by Italian author Carlo Collodi, written in Florence. The first half was originally a serial between 1881 and 1883, and then later completed as a book for children in February 1883. It is about the mischievous adventures of Pinocchio , an...
to Dante
DANTE
Delivery of Advanced Network Technology to Europe is a not-for-profit organisation that plans, builds and operates the international networks that interconnect the various national research and education networks in Europe and surrounding regions...
, Saint Sebastian to Baccus
Baccus
Baccus may be either a given name or surname shared by several notable people, among them being:* Gabriel Baccus Matthews , Liberian politician* Rick Baccus , United States Army general...
. These displays of actionism
Actionism
Actionism can mean:*Viennese Actionism, a school of art which started in Vienna, Austria*a term used by Theodor W. Adorno to refer to the left-wing anti-intellectualism...
(different from Viennese Actionism
Viennese Actionism
The term Viennese Actionism describes a short and violent movement in 20th century art that can be regarded as part of the many independent efforts of the 1960s to develop "action art" . Its main participants were Günter Brus, Otto Mühl, Hermann Nitsch and Rudolf Schwarzkogler. As "actionists",...
, to which Hermann Nitsch
Hermann Nitsch
Hermann Nitsch is an Austrian artist who works in experimental and multimedia modes.Born in Vienna, Nitsch received training in painting during the time he studied at the Wiener Graphische Lehr-und Versuchanstalt. He is called an "actionist" or a performance artist...
is associated) verge on kitsch
Kitsch
Kitsch is a form of art that is considered an inferior, tasteless copy of an extant style of art or a worthless imitation of art of recognized value. The concept is associated with the deliberate use of elements that may be thought of as cultural icons while making cheap mass-produced objects that...
and raise personal narcissism to a higher level.
Throughout his long career Ontani has expressed his creativity and poetics through the use of many different techniques: from his "oggetti pleonastici" (1965–1969), made in plaster
Plaster cast
A plaster cast is a copy made in plaster of another 3-dimensional form. The original from which the cast is taken may be a sculpture, building, a face, a fossil or other remains such as fresh or fossilised footprints – particularly in palaeontology .Sometimes a...
, to the "stanza delle similitudini," made with objects cut in corrugated fiberboard. He has often anticipated the use of techniques subsequently adopted by other artists: his first Super 8
Super 8 mm film
Super 8 mm film is a motion picture film format released in 1965 by Eastman Kodak as an improvement of the older "Double" or "Regular" 8 mm home movie format....
films were made between 1969 and 1972. With his work "Ange Infidele" (1968) Ontani begins to experiment with photography
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
. From the beginning his photography has been characterized by some particular elements: the subject is always the artist himself, who uses his own body and face to personify historic, mythological, literary and popular themes; the chosen formats are usually miniature and gigantography, and each work is considered unique. From the late 1960s on are "Teofania" (1969), "San Sebastiano nel bosco di Calvenzano, d'apres Guido Reni" Tentazione," "Meditazione, d'apres de la Tour," "Bacchino" (1970), "Tell il Giovane," "Raffaello," "Dante," " Pinocchio" (1972), "Lapsus Lupus," the diptych "EvAdamo" (1973), "Leda e il Cigno" (1974), "I grilli e i tappeti volanti" that will be followed by other "d'apres," and the first Indian cycle "En route vers l'Inde, d'apres Pierre Lotti." His first artistic photography has a historic importance because it anticipates a phenomenon that will be widespread and popular from the 1980s.
While working on his photographs Ontani began to make his first tableaux vivants. From 1969 to 1989 the artist made around 30 of these exhibitions, again foreshadowing the so-called interactive installations, which are based on the mixture of various technologies. With this same attitude he has created works in papier-mâché, glass, wood (he has made numerous masks, especially on Bali, with Pule wood) and, more rarely, in bronze, marble, and fabric. He has also made notorious works in ceramic, thanks to the cooperation with Bottega Gatti of Faenza
Faenza
Faenza is an Italian city and comune, in the province of Ravenna, Emilia-Romagna, situated 50 km southeast of Bologna.Faenza is noted for its manufacture of majolica ware glazed earthenware pottery, known from the name of the town as "faience"....
, Venera Finocchiaro in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, and the Terraviva laboratory of Vietri: some of them are his "pineal" masks, the "Ermestetiche," and the last great works such as "GaneshaMusa" and "NapoleonCentaurOntano."
Ontani has not used all these different techniques as ends in themselves but as occasions to experiment new possibilities and formulate new variations of the themes and subjects that interest him the most: his own "transhistoric" travel through myth, the mask, the symbol and iconographic representation. He has exhibited his works in some of the most important museums and galleries of the world, from the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum is a well-known museum located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States. It is the permanent home to a renowned collection of Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, early Modern, and contemporary art and also features special exhibitions...
to the Pompidou Centre, the Museo Reina Sofía to the Frankfurter Kunstverein
Frankfurter Kunstverein
The Frankfurt Art Association is an art museum founded in 1829 by a group of influential citizen of the city of Frankfurt, Germany. The aim of the institution is to support the arts in the city, which was an important center of trade and business...
. He has also participated in several editions of the Venice
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale is a major contemporary art exhibition that takes place once every two years in Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival is part of it. So too is the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which is held in even years...
, Sydney, and Lyon biennales. Recently he has had three important retrospectives at the MoMA
Moma
Moma may refer to:* Moma , an owlet moth genus* Moma Airport, a Russian public airport* Moma District, Nampula, Mozambique* Moma River, a right tributary of the Indigirka River* Google Moma, the Google corporate intranet...
(2001), the SMAK in Ghent (2003–2004) and the MAMbo
Bologna Museum of Modern Art
The Bologna Museum of Modern Art is a purpose-designed centre of modern and experimental art, located in the centre of Bologna, Italy.-History:...
in Bologna (2008).
Main collective exhibitions
- Venice BiennaleVenice BiennaleThe Venice Biennale is a major contemporary art exhibition that takes place once every two years in Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival is part of it. So too is the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which is held in even years...
(1972,1978,1984,1995) - Pompidou Centre, ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
: "Identité italienne: Art en Italie depuis 1959" (1981) - Solomon R. Guggenheim MuseumSolomon R. Guggenheim MuseumThe Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum is a well-known museum located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States. It is the permanent home to a renowned collection of Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, early Modern, and contemporary art and also features special exhibitions...
, New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
: "Italian Art Now: An American Perspective" (1982) - Frankfurter KunstvereinFrankfurter KunstvereinThe Frankfurt Art Association is an art museum founded in 1829 by a group of influential citizen of the city of Frankfurt, Germany. The aim of the institution is to support the arts in the city, which was an important center of trade and business...
: "1960-1985 Aspekte der Italianische Kunst" (1986) - VI Sydney Biennale (1986)
- Museo Reina Sofía, MadridMadridMadrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
: "La otra escultura. Treinta años de escultura italiana" (1990) - VII New Delhi Triennale (1991)
Main personal exhibitions
- Galleria San Petronio, Bologna: "Luigi Ontani" (1967)
- Galleria Lucio Amelio, Naples y L'Attico, Rome (1974)
- De Appel Foundation, Amsterdam (1975)
- Sonnabend gallery, Paris, New York (1976, 1977)
- The kitchen center for Video Music and performance, New York (1979)
- 121 art gallery, Antwerp: "Ontani's Mask" (1983)
- Galleria dello Scudo, Verona: "Idea Aida del vero diffida" (1995)
- Frankfurter Kunstverein, Frankfurt: Luigi Ontani (1996)
- Sperone-westwater, New York: "Ermestetiche" (1997)
- MoMA, New York: "GaneshamUSA 1965-2001"(2001)
- Bangkok National Gallery, Bangkok: "AlnusThaiAurea" (2002)
- Kunsthalle, Vienna: Le martyre de San Sebastien (2003)
- SMAK, Ghent: "Genthara: Luigi Ontani" (2004)
- MAMBO, Bologna: "Gigante3RazzEtà7ArtiCentAuro" (2008)