24-04-2019

David Tremlett Wall Surfaces, inbetween architecture and public art in Bari

Bari,

Installation,

Event, David Tremlett,

On 18 April, British artist David Tremlett was present at the opening of his latest work: Wall Surfaces (27 stops – Bari). The permanent wall drawing is a project which blends art and architecture, created as part of a major redevelopment project of the Monumental Complex of Santa Chiara and San Francesco della Scarpa at via Pier l’Eremita 25 in Bari. The work is dedicated to the memory of Marilena Bonomo, an important gallery owner who brought great international artists including Sol LeWitt, Alighiero Boetti and Mimmo Paladino, as well as Tremlett himself, to the Puglian city.



David Tremlett Wall Surfaces, inbetween architecture and public art in Bari

On 18 April, in the presence of the artist, the latest work created by David Tremlett, a British artist and sculptor who has made mural drawings his signature style, was revealed in Bari: Wall Surfaces (27 stops – Bari).
Wall Surfaces (27 stops – Bari) is a project which blends architecture and public art, created as part of a major redevelopment project of the Monumental Complex of Santa Chiara and San Francesco della Scarpa, at via Pier l’Eremita 25, the headquarters of the superintendent for archaeology, fine arts and landscape for the metropolitan city of Bari. The work was financially supported by the Directorate General for Contemporary Art and Architecture and Suburbs of the Italian Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities.
David Tremlett has created a permanent wall drawing, a composition of 27 large and colourful vertical elements of different shapes and sizes, created in permanent pastel directly on the wall. The artistic work was coordinated with architect Luca Cipelletti, who has been collaborating with the artist for ten years on a range of architectural and artistic works. Some students from the Bari Academy of Fine Arts were also involved in the creation of the work, and the artist allowed them to experiment with his unusual pastel technique.
Through this work of public art, David Tremlett transforms the visual impact of the pre-existing structures. In particular, the artist worked on the façade of a piece of twentieth-century architecture which connects the two main historical buildings which are part of the monumental complex of Santa Chiara and San Francesco della Scarpa. The artwork creates a dialogue between the two monumental architectures of the historical complex, using an artistic approach to provide a sense of completeness to what has been an unresolved point in the twentieth-century architecture.

David Tremlett himself explained why he chose 27 as the number of components of his wall drawing:
I shall draw 27 graphic columns because I have visited Bari 27 times. In fact, my first trip to Italy was to Bari, where Marilena had invited me to put on an exhibition. This piece in Santa Chiara is a tribute to her” The Marilena the artist is referring to is Marilena Bonomo, an important gallery owner and cultural figure, who passed in 2014. The piece was officially dedicated to the gallery owner and her important cultural activity, who brought some major international artists to the Puglian city.
Marilena Bonomo had opened her gallery in the 1970s with a choral exhibition project which artists such as Daniel Buren, Jan Dibbets and Sol LeWitt had taken part in. Following this, Galleria Bonomo had played host to important shows, mainly on the scene of minimalist and conceptual art - which was Bonomo’s true passion - including: the personal exhibitions of Richard Tuttle (1972), Fred Sanback (1975) and David Tremlett. After the first event in 1875, the British artist returned to Bari for both personal shows in 1976, 1979, 1981, 1985, 1991, 1996, 2002 and 2009, and for collective projects.

(Agnese Bifulco)

Work: Wall Surfaces (27 stops – Bari)
Artist: David Tremlett https://www.davidtremlett.com/
Location: Monumental complex of Santa Chiara and San Francesco della Scarpa, via Pier l’Eremita 25 in Bari – Italy.


×
×

Stay in touch with the protagonists of architecture, Subscribe to the Floornature Newsletter