"Glasstress is the evocative and provocative title of this exhibition on the use of glass in contemporary art.
The exhibition proposes following the story of the increasing affirmation of glass as the stuff of modernity.
Originally a noble material used for functional purposes, over the centuries, glass has had to exert great pressure and to expend enormous effort to free itself from the clichés that have imprisoned it and have relegated its uses to limited contexts.
A state of continuous stress and tension has therefore characterized this material. Its presence in the world of contemporary art is a recent conquest.
The exhibition brings together some particularly important works from the first half of the 20th century along with works and installations by artists active in the vibrant landscape of the last few decades, in such a way as to create ensembles rich with cross-references and harmonies or ones characterized by a diversity of approaches and aims.
The arrangement of the works unfolds in neither a rigid chronological order nor a theoretically exhaustive one but rather one that is emotionally pregnant, that allows the onlooker to understand the wealth of this extraordinary material's expressive potential, a material traditionally linked to the city of Venice."
From ArtDaily.org:"VENICE.- Glasstress, an official exhibition of the 53rd Venice Biennale that celebrates the use of glass in contemporary art, will be held at both the historic Istituto Veneto di Scienze Lettere ed Arti at the Palazzo Cavalli Franchetti (Campo Santo Stefano – San Marco, Venezia) and at the Scuola Grande Confraternita di San Teodoro, (San Marco, Venezia), from June 6 – November 22, 2009. The exhibition will be presented by Venice Projects, an organization dedicated to presenting the work of internationally recognized artists who work with glass. There will be a press preview on Thursday, June 4 from 11 am to 6 pm. The opening reception will be on Friday, June 5 at 6:00 pm. In addition, “Matter”, a symposium organized by Artist Rene Rietmeyer, will be held at the Palazzo Cavalli Franchetti during the Glasstress Press Preview on June 4 from 1 PM to 4 PM.
Glasstress will feature both specially commissioned new work and selected pieces by forty-five modern and contemporary artists, many of whom are working with glass for the first time. The exhibition will explore each artist’s unique approach to working with the glass, the technical limits inherent in the material, and the synthesis between the artist’s ideas and the glass master’s skills. Glasstress is organized by Murano-based art impresario Adriano in collaboration with Laura Mattioli Rossi and Rosa Barovier Mentasti. The exhibition is sponsored by The Mjellby Konstmuseum of Halmstad, Sweden in collaboration with Susan Scherman of Susan Scherman Fine Arts, San Francisco.
Glasstress represents Berengo’s dream of examining the expressive possibilities of glass by presenting a global survey and critical look at its use by modern and contemporary artists. The exhibition will showcase original and innovate work by artists, who traditionally work in other media, such as, Luciano Fabro, Louise Bourgeois, Joseph Kosuth, Kiki Smith, Fred Wilson and Tony Cragg. These artists were and are fascinated by the formal and conceptual possibilities of the material. In addition, there will be work by glass artists, such as Lino Tagliapietra, who have taken the forms and technical traditions of Murano glass production to new and exciting extremes. Dan Graham, who uses glass to create contemporary environments and installations, is also part of this important and historical presentation.
Glasstress is the link between the Venetian fine art glass movement of 1950s, Venice Projects and the 2009 Venice Biennale. As a young man, growing up in Venice, Berengo was aware that Peggy Guggenheim was fascinated by the artistic possibilities of glass – she felt that Venetian glass was too important to be used only for decorative purposes.
Guggenheim encouraged Kokoschka, Picasso, Braque, Chagall and Max Ernst to experiment with glass by working with Egidio Costantini (“Fucina Degli Angeli” – The Forge of Angels). He was the master who could help them express their artistic ideas using glass. Following in Costantini’s footsteps, Berengo started helping artists, many of whom have never worked with glass, discover the artistic possibilities of the material - many of these artists are in the exhibition.
Participating Artists – Glasstress: Josef Albers, Arman, Jean Arp, Barbara Bloom, Louise Bourgeois, Sergio Bovenga, Daniel Buren, Lawrence Carroll, Cèsar, Soyeon Cho, Tony Cragg, Marie Louise Ekman, Jan Fabre, Luciano Fabro, Lucio Fontana, Francesco Gennari, Dan Graham, Richard Hamilton, Mona Hatoum, Hye Rim Lee, Charlotte Hodes, Mimmo Jodice, Marya Kazoun, Joseph Kosuth, Jannis Kounellis, Raimund Kummer, Federica Marangoni, ORLAN, Jean-Michel Othoniel, Luca Pancrazzi, Anne Peabody, Giuseppe Penone, Anton Pevsner, Bettina Pousttchi, Robert Rauschenberg, Man Ray, Rene Rietmeyer, Silvano Rubino, Sandro Sergi, Kiki Smith, Jana Sterbak, Lino Tagliapietra, Koen Vanmechelen, Fred Wilson, Kimiko Yoshida and Chen Zhen."
ArtDaily. "Glass Stress - Collateral Event of the 53rd International Art Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia" June 7, 2009. http://www.artdaily.com/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=31148
From Whitewall Magazine:
“Glass Stress,” an exhibition that celebrates the use of glass in contemporary art, opens this week as a collateral event of the Venice Biennale. Work by Josef Albers, Louise Bourgeois, Tony Cragg, Dan Graham, Lino Tagliapietra, and Lucien Fabro have been brought together by Venice Projects, an organization founded by Adriano Berengo that has been bringing together artists and glass masters for two decades. Nearly half of the exhibition will be commissioned work by artists working with glass for the first time. Through Venice Projects, Berengo hopes to link the Venetian art glass movement of the fifties to the Biennale, while securing glass as a respectable material for contemporary artists to use. We spoke with Berengo on a recent trip to New York about his pitch to contemporary artists and why glass has been negatively associated with craft and function.
WHITEWALL: What is a typical reaction when you approach an artist to work with glass. Are there certain artists that you approach because you think they might work better with it?
ADRIANO BERENGO: I work better with painters. You know why? Because painters are, at least at the beginning, more flexible. A sculptor normally make pieces himself so he is more aware. Whereas the painter, when he sees the transformation of a flat surface into a tri-dimensional sort of thing, he is amazed. So, how do I choose the artist? Some artists have overcome their prejudices [about glass] and they approach me. I will also approach artists. This is the most difficult part of the job: to convince them that glass could be a medium for their expression. Sometimes, I succeed, sometimes I fail but in general now, they approach me. I think that it’s very interesting that in the art world the use of glass is becoming more and more frequent and more and more important. I don’t want to say that I am responsible for this, but I think I have contributed a little bit to this.
WW: How many artists were commissioned specifically for the show?
AB: I think 50%. Every time for me is a new experience. It’s a fascinating experience.
WW: So the artist comes up with a concept, you pair them with a glass master, and let them run with it?
AB: Well, whatever they have in mind and whatever is feasible of course. But I think that an intelligent artist pretty soon understands the possibility and the limitations of the medium.
WW: Why does glass have a bad reputation? Why isn’t it used by as many artists? Do you think artists are turned off because of it’s ties to “craft”?
AB: Yes, because glass is such an old material that has been frequently used for decorative purposes and for functional purposes. You make a chandelier in glass, we drink out of glass. That known function of decorative things has created, in my opinion, an obstacle to the use of it. But look at what happened to photography. At the beginning, all the attention was on the medium. But pretty soon we realized that the camera was not enough. There was a concept behind it. So photography became very popular. I think that the more glass is used by artists, the more this barrier, this reluctance, this resistance will disappear. I think that glass will be one of the noble materials for contemporary artists.
Donaghue, K. "Venice Biennale: Glass Stress." June 3, 2009. Whitewall Magazine website. accessed June 7, 2009. http://www.whitewallmag.com/2009/06/03/venice-biennale-glass-stress/
From TheArtNewspaper:
"No other city in the world is more closely associated with the art of glassmaking than Venice, so it is fitting that "Glass Stress", a new survey of modern and contemporary glass art, opens on 6 June. The show brings together commissioned pieces by artists such as Fred Wilson, Tony Cragg and Orlan with rare objects made by Jean Arp, Louise Bourgeois, Jan Fabre, Mona Hatoum, Man Ray, Robert Rauschenberg and Lino Tagliapietra, among others.
Who is showing where - download Venice map
Adriano Berengo, a local curator and art dealer, devised the exhibition to draw attention to the use of glass in installation and sculpture art today. Mr Berengo has been committed to revitalizing the art of glassmaking since the 1980s when he founded Berengo Studio, an organisation designed to help artists learn about the potential uses of glass in contemporary work. Since that time he has invited over 140 international artists to his studio to collaborate with expert glassblowers, many of who are included in the show.
The exhibition is co-organised by Mr Berengo, Laura Mattioli Rossi and Rosa Barovier Mentasti and is sponsored by the Mjellby Konstmuseum of Halmstad, Sweden, in collaboration with Susan Scherman Fine Arts, San Francisco.
Glass Stress, Istituto Veneto di Scienze Lettere ed Arti at the Palazzo Cavalli Franchetti and at the Scuola Grande Confraternita di San Teodoro, San Marco (6 June–22 November 2009)."
Picard, Charmaine. "Major collateral event focuses on glass." May 29, 2009. The Art Newspaper. website accessed June 7, 2009. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/articles/Major-collateral-event-focuses-glass/17443
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