Artists Ugo Rondinone
Curator Javier Molins
Venue Scuola Grande San Giovanni Evangelista, Venice, Italy
All images Courtesy the artist; Galerie Eva Presenhuber, Zurich; Esther Schipper, Berlin; Sadie Coles HQ, London; Gladstone, New York; Kamel Mennour, Paris; Kukje Gallery, Seoul. Photo: Andrea Rossetti
“The sculptures in ‘burn shine fly’ aims to engender an altogether contemporary version of the sublime, one in which the smallest candle sculpture is of no less consequence than the overarching totality of the sun sculpture or the stellar marriage of the earthbound body with the waterfilled sky. The work should dazzle us and send us into a deep reflection about the marvels and mysteries of life.” – Ugo Rondinone
Curated by Javier Molins, burn shine fly is installed within the historic walls of one of the oldest and most important Scuole in Venice, with both iconic works by Rondinone as well as a new body of work created specifically for this exhibition.
Founded in 1261, Scuola Grande San Giovanni Evangelista sets before visitors the long and rich history of the city of Venice. Its walls have housed treasures ranging from relics of the True Cross to works by renowned Venetian Renaissance artists such as Titian, Carpaccio and Bellini. An imposing, sculptural stone gateway designed by 15th-century Venetian sculptor and architect, Pietro Lombardo, leads into this historic complex of buildings, transforming the street passage into an enclosed quadrangle, an intimate courtyard which leads to the church and the Scuola’s magnificent frescoed and painted rooms.
