Skip to main content

Jacopo Benci – Débrayages a cura di / curated by Maddalena Rinaldi


See English translation below..


ADD-Art
via Palazzo dei Duchi 6 [Piazza del Mercato], Spoleto, Umbria

fino al / until 6.12.2015
Lun-Ven / Mon-Fri 16:30-19:30 
Sab-Dom per appuntamento / Sat-Sun by appointment

The exhibition presents a selection of photo works by Jacopo Benci from 2007 to 2011.
A fully illustrated catalogue with a text by Maddalena Rinaldi will be presented at the opening.

Jacopo Benci lives in Rome. His work includes photography, video/film, installation, performance; it has been exhibited in galleries, museums, festivals in Italy, Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, France, Germany, Great Britain, Holland, Hungary, Russia, Thailand, United States. Benci is Senior Research Fellow in Modern Studies & Contemporary Visual Culture of the British School at Rome, where he was Assistant Director Fine Arts from 1998 to 2013.

In 2012, I attended a fascinating exhibit in Rome by Benci. The Mystery of the Park featured a collection of instant photographs, digital photographs and a video. The subject of these photos was Maryon Park in southeast London, the location of a key scene Michelangelo Antonioni's epic Blow Up. Benci's fascination with gardens and parks lies in the way that we generally regard parks as "spaces prepared for living in the magic of daylight, for contemplation or for play, for meeting or solitude.." That is quite a poetic thought for a simple and beautiful exhibition of photos. If you are familiar with the film and the scene that was shot in Maryon Park, you will find irony in the peaceful, still portraits that graced the walls of the Roman gallery  where they were displayed. I found the exhibit to be a beautiful union of art and film, which captured the tranquility and vast landscape of one location, and I appreciated the fact it kept relevant an iconic Italian filmmaker of days gone by.

Check him out online at http://www.jacopobenci.com.

From Jacopo Benci's 2012 Rome exhibit, The Mystery of the Park 


In Italiano..

La mostra presenta una selezione di opere fotografiche di Jacopo Benci del 2007-2011.
Il catalogo illustrato della mostra, con un testo di Maddalena Rinaldi, sarà presentato all'inaugurazione.

Jacopo Benci vive a Roma. Il suo lavoro include fotografia, video/film, installazione, performance; è stato esposto in gallerie, musei, festival in Italia, Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, Francia, Germania, Gran Bretagna, Olanda, Ungheria, Russia, Thailandia, Stati Uniti. Benci è Senior Research Fellow in Modern Studies & Contemporary Visual Culture dell'Accademia Britannica, di cui è stato Assistant Director Fine Arts dal 1998 al 2013.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Anna Foglietta: Actress and Activist with Old School Elegance

One look at actress Anna Foglietta in her any of her roles, and the Golden Age of Italian cinema comes to mind. Among Italy’s most sought-after actresses today, Foglietta brings to the table a classic eloquence of yesterday while representing Italy’s modern woman. Born in Rome in 1979, Foglietta began her career in 2005 with a role in the RAI television series La squadra . Her character Agent Anna De Luca had a two-year run on the series as she was transitioning to cinema with Paolo Virzì’s 2006 ensemble project 4-4-2- Il gioco più bello del mondo . Since then, she has become one of Italy’s most diverse actresses, transforming herself into interesting, layered characters for comedies and dramas alike. Aside from a small part in Anton Corbijn’s 2010 film The American starring George Clooney, Foglietta’s work began reaching mainstream American audiences in 2015. As Elisa in Edoardo Leo’s 2015 comedy Noi e la Giulia , Foglietta showed her funny side playing a goofball pregn...

La Grande Bellezza of Sabrina Ferilli

The 2015 Rome Premiere of "Io e Lei" Sabrina Ferilli has been gracing Italian screens, big and small, since the mid-80s. With her recent role in Paolo Sorrentino's international blockbuster, "La Grande Bellezza" (The Great Beauty), audiences throughout the world are getting the chance to see why she is one of Italy's most beloved treasures. Born in Rome in 1964, Sabrina Ferilli is the daughter of Giuliano Ferilli, the former leader of the Communist Party of the Lazio Region. Ferilli attempted to study her craft at Rome's Experimental Center of Cinematography, but later decided to abandon her studies and dive right into her career. Time has proven that she made the right choice. With dozens of movies to her credit, Ferilli has appeared on television and on the big screen, becoming a household name in Italy. Ferilli is the very portrait of Italian beauty with her infamous figure, long brown locks and dark eyes. But as cliched as it may sound, s...

Director Gianni Di Gregorio explores relationships in later life with 'Never Too Late for Love'

In “Astolfo” (“Never Too Late for Love”), director Gianni Di Gregorio delivers a coming-of-age film for the golden years of life about a retired professor who leaves Rome to return to a tiny mountain village in Abruzzo. The film opens with the title character, played by Di Gregorio, walking through the streets of his Roman neighborhood, groceries in hand, only to find his landlord waiting for him when he arrives home. She is there to announce that he will have to vacate his humble residence to make way for her daughter, who is getting married soon.  After some contemplation, he calls his ex-wife to ask her about an old family castle he split with her in their divorce. When she confirms that a portion of the castle is his for the taking, he gleefully returns to his spacious new home only to discover it has been occupied by a squatter, who turns out to be an acquaintance from his childhood who is also down on his luck. Without hesitation, Astolfo adopts the man as his roommate. ...

Nicoletta Braschi and Roberto Benigni.. What cinema dreams are made of

The Toronto International Film Festival is wrapping up its retrospective of the cinematic collaboration of husband and wife team, Nicoletta Braschi and Roberto Benigni. Over the last few days, the couple have participated in discussions, Q & A sessions and have introduced several of their films. Today, I attended a screening of "La voce della luna" (The voice of the moon). It was  Federico Fellini's last film and is a wonderful tribute to the director's signature poetic madness. The film gave Benigni the opportunity to team up with fellow beloved comic, Paolo Villaggio, and the two created a truly unforgettable adventure. Today's screening began with an introduction by Benigni. The moments leading up to his introduction were noticeably serious and somewhat tense. Benigni's publicist and TIFF security staunchly guarded his privacy. There was no interaction and no photos were allowed. Guided by ...

Paola Cortellesi shines as La Befana in a family comedy blending tradition and modernity

A wildly successful Christmastime film, earning over $8 million at the box office when it premiered in 2018, "La befana vien di notte" (“The Legend of the Christmas Witch”) is a wholesome holiday comedy that the whole family can watch. Directed by Michele Soavi, the film stars two of Italy's most diverse contemporary actors, Paola Cortellesi and Stefano Fresi, as gift-giving foes. Paola (Cortellesi) is a grammar schoolteacher by day, but at night, she turns into La Befana, the Christmas witch, a mystical being who brings gifts to the good kids and coal to the naughty ones.   On one of her Befana nights, she was attacked by a dog that tore her Befana gift list. When she returned home from a night of riding on her broomstick, delivering gifts to children all over the world, she realized that she had forgotten one child. When she discovered the torn-up list, she figured out who the child was, got back on her broom, and headed straight to his house. Having arrived late, the b...