ANTONIO RIELLO

Antonio Riello (1958) was born under the sign of Leo in Città del Vaticano (Rome). Currently he lives and works in London and in Bassano del Grappa. Since the beginning of his artistic career he has been deeply fascinated by the paradoxes and controversial issues of Western (mostly Italian) way of life.

The subversive manipulation of a certain degree of ambiguity of social life and cultural production is the main feature of his work.  His works have been exhibited in many Museums and Art Foundations all over the World.

BIENAL DE CURITIBA, (Curitiba BR), BALTIC (Gateshead UK), NGBK (Berlin D), NEUHAUSEN KUNSTVEREIN (Neuhausen D) MART (Rovereto I), MUSEE D’ART SAINT ETIENNE (Saint Etienne F), KUNSTHALLE WIEN (Vienna A), FONDAZIONE ARNALDO POMODORO (Milano I), PAC (Milano I), PALAZZO DELLE PAPESSE (Siena I), NEUE GALERIE (Graz A), WOLFSBURG KUNSTVEREIN (Wolfsburg D), GALLERIA CIVICA ARTE CONTEMPORANEA (Palermo I), MUSEO PECCI (Prato I), FREIBURG KUNSTVEREIN (Freiburg D), KIEL KUNSTVEREIN (Kiel D), GALLERIA CIVICA ARTE CONTEMPORANEA (Trento I), BIENNALE ARTE TIRANA 2001 (Tirana AL), SYNOPALIA II (Synope TR), ITALIAN CULTURAL INSTITUTE (London UK), WIESBADEN KUNSTVEREIN (Wiesbaden D), MUSEO STORIA NATURALE (Milano I), XII and XV QUADRIENNALE D’ARTE (Roma I), BORUSIAN FOUNDATION (Istanbul TR), CHELSEA MUSEUM OF ART (New York USA), REMAP (Athens GR), ELGIZ MUSEUM (Istanbul TR), 54th and 57th BIENNALE DI VENEZIA ARTI VISIVE (Venezia I), GLOBEGALLERY (NewCastle/Tyne UK), PALAZZO PEGORINI (Spoleto I),  4 CANAKKALE BIENNALE (Canakkale TR), GALLERIA ARTE MODERNA (Torino I), BIENNALE ARTE RIJEKA (Rijeka HR), MUSEUM ART DESIGN (New York USA), MUDAC (Lausanne CH), MUSEO CIVICO BASSANO (Bassano I), OPENSPACE LONDON-ISTANBUL (London UK), ARIANA MUSEE’ (Geneve CH), MUSEUM DER WELT (Berlin D), DORDRECHT MUSEUM (Dordrecht NL), FONDAZIONE BENETTON (Treviso I), GLASSTRESS/FONDAZIONE BERENGO (Venezia I).

ICONS FOR A RECYCLING AGE

The Alter Modern Era is a Time for a fluid and chaotic visual grammar where the icons related to re-use are paramount: anywhere the most common and well known.

Recycling is, in fact, the compulsory ethic Mantra of Late Modernity. The main goal of these new works of Antonio Riello is to be like a sort of conceptual map of this attitude and of its related fears, idiosyncrasies, hopes. A visual dictionary for a sustainable civili- sation and its current kind of Anthropology. Actually, the artists has not in mind only re- cycling, in general terms he deals with all the contemporary forms of amending, saving and repairing. A survey of the (possible) incoming “Aesthetical Austerity” too.

They are made of recycled coconut fibre, the same stuff the humble door mates are made of. Something traditionally simple and with a lot of inner understatement. Some- thing where people are used to step on. Objects that, in default, are used mainly to say “welcome!”, even if today in many countries, alas, is not so easy to hear this word (perhaps this stands as a symptom of the artist’s incurable optimism). The coconut fibre before is coupled and after carved. The structural frame of the works is made of recy- cled wood coming from scraped furniture and crates of various nature and every frag- ment of wood has its own (intriguing) little bit to add.

Icons and material together suggest a kind of survey about the so-called “Aesthetical Austerity”, actually a glamorous rename for the traditional matter of the glorious Mr Beeton’s “Household Management”.

These artworks are (critically) celebrating the present obsession for vintage and retro’ style, a clear and ominous sign of a scaring perception about close future. Another less virtuous form of (cultural) recycling is the Cult of (close) Past. To underscore this trend the artist deliberately uses sometimes suggestions from the golden age (the Sixthies) of Italian Contemporary Art, like the Mario Schifano “Palms” or the Piero Manzoni “Canned Shit”. The “chemical works” of the artists belonging to Arte Povera are inspira- tional too.

THE MENDELEEV ART PROJECT

Part of these works (squared shape) are used in an art project with the goal to arrange a critical celebration of the Mendeleev Periodic Table of Chemical Elements. All its 118 Elements are going to become, in general, part of a huge installation. The Periodic Table is an outstanding scientific achievement of course, but in this case a special focus is on the most controversial and “dark” part of it (particularly the “Rare Earths” and some oth-ers like Lithium and Cobalt). The elements mostly used to produce high-tech items: smart-phones, screens, computers, lasers, electronical devices, long life batteries. Some-thing that is extremely necessary and rather expensive. Controlling and extracting them is a geo-strategical priority and a gigantic and profitable business. In some countries workers and miners are exploited and forced to labour. Local wars erupt too because of these components. They are today, more than oil itself, a cause of instability and discon-tent, a kind of techno-colonialism is alas often related to them. This also a possible (and of course partial and radical) artistic portrait of the geopolitical state of World.