interference
EXHIBITION “INTERFERENCE” By Roberta Gonella, Co-Curator Delphine Desoutter
San Pietro in Atrio in Como – July 12 – August 4, 2019
From July 12th to August 4th, 2019 in Como, at the space San Pietro in Atrio, the contemporary art exhibition “INTERFERENCE” will take place: a selection of 7 international artists with more than 20 works of art (some of them exclusively created for the exhibition) will present their thoughts on the interference of modern techniques in our life.
Artists seldom confront themselves to this subject that recalls though important and urgently needed considerations. A range of technical innovations have increasingly modified, in the past 10 years, the way humans communicate with each other. Along the development of new behaviors, we give away an unprecedented detailed amount of information about who we are, what we do and when. How do these innovations interpose in the human life? Do they hinder us or are they helpful? The interference of modern technology brings up ethical and moral implications regarding the infringement on privacy in our human sphere. The location itself (a deconsecrated church) plays an important symbolical part in this exhibition. It once embodied the central place where people and communities —in flesh— would meet and communicate. Quoting Roberta Gonella, exhibition curator and founder of Visionary Art Trends headquartered in Zurich: “The church was humanity’s way to communicate through the centuries to its people. Now that very human form of communication is threatened by our technological age. Where more perfect to make a show about this confrontation than at Como’s beautiful church by inviting the leading artists of our day to confront this welcomed or not welcomed interference into our lives.”
Seven International artists will be showcasing their works of art
Sheila Elias
Her work is about the layers of life and art history, seeking in it a connection between art aesthetics and social consciousness. She has seen a transformation in her art through the digital age. Although technology helps her create and expand in techniques; it can be very invasive in our lives today. We invite technology to be intrusive; we create the need for it. Her vision for “Vigilance” (artworks in the exhibition) denotes caution of the over usage of technology in our everyday lives.
Andres Levin
He will be creating several soundtracks specifically for the show, highlighting different interfering ambiances, based on the idea of worldwide phone calls.
Fabrizio Bellanca
His paintings, “The Sentinel”, “Under Control” and “The New Trinity” highlight the surveillance cameras and the arrival of drones in the city. Everything that we do is in a beam of light: we give our consent to be tracked, whether in a city or on the web. We have the illusion that these devices are helpful and in the end we realize that we are just a number…of credit card.
Hongtao Zhou
For the exhibition Interference, Hongtao Zhou will employ the mode of 3D printing technology in order to raise questions about sight, knowledge, information, and the notion of time in relationship to the human experience. Zhou will construct Textscapes of various cities around the world, manipulating the text to form into cityscapes of dense urban metropolises such as Shanghai, New York and Milan. The text functions as readable maps, both visually echoing the realistic skyline as well as describing the cities’ demographic data and calling attention to the notions of space and/or lack thereof. By simultaneously highlighting both text and architectonic forms, the viewer at first glance, is confronted with a momentary visual disorientation, unable to see both text and form concurrently, and hence undergoes a visual and cognitive interference of sorts. Eventually, after comprehending the artwork‘s duality, the viewer is able to grasp the work‘s message and communication of information in its totality.
Duvier del Dago
Three boxes will be featured in the exhibition, one with the depiction of Adam and Eve reclining, one with a man, an eagle and a drone, and the last one depicting a firefly and a drone. The project Adán y Eva (Adam and Eve) addresses the conservation of the human species and mankind’s necessity to return to its primal state in an era in which new technologies and communications threaten the integrity and intimacy of humanity and nature. The installations belong to the series Standby which uses representations of civil and military drones to depict the accelerating dilution of humanness.
Nicholas Berdysheff
For the exhibition Interference, Berdysheff examines the complexities of modern surveillance with a focus on photography and visual media. His work in the exhibition (a video and a print) deal with themes ranging from technologies used by government and regulatory agencies to everyday surveillance practices that have become integral parts of our lives, especially in social media. The question is: How can contemporary art and media theory contribute to a better understanding of our modern surveillance society?
Julio Figueroa Beltran
Julio Figueroa Beltran’s work explores the general theme of man’s relationship with his environment. The topics depicted in his paintings show traces of the incongruous encounters of distant realities. Figueroa Beltran has created a group of three paintings for the “Interference” exhibition. These works deal with the notion of surveillance and intrusion, sometimes concealed behind the beauty of the scene represented. In the painting “When the wind blows outside”, the peaceful landscape of the northern lights in the background, windmills, and a barn are tinged with an intense red light, as if someone was spying through a thermal imaging camera. The canvas “Into the Parallel Ocean” portrays an astronaut submerged in an oneiric scene, where he is surrounded by floating jellyfish that fill the space. This juxtaposition of incompatible elements creates an unreal situation within the painting, thus creating a metaphorical approach to the interference idea. In “Unexpected Intruder”, a military drone crosses the sky in its merciless flight. Under its threatening presence, the house roofs are intact and indifferent, as are the inhabitants. This scene is like a moment frozen in time, full of mystery and tension, waiting for the outcome. In this work, as in the others by Julio Figueroa Beltran, the relationship between the observer and the scene is essential; it is an interaction between his poetic images and the viewer’s imagination.
