Project Room #5 | Alis/Filliol. eud

From September 20 to October 27, 2017, the Foundation hosts the first solo exhibition in Milan of Alis/Filliol, a duo formed by Davide Gennarino (1979) and Andrea Respino (1976). This initiative is the second of the three Project Room 2017 exhibitions, with the scientific project curated by Simone Menegoi.

On this occasion, Alis/Filliol will present a large new work, created specifically for the Foundation’s space, where sculpture will be chosen as the reference field and area of experimentation. As in the artists’ previous works, this piece will also revisit sculptural techniques in unexpected and sometimes paradoxical ways, reinterpreting traditional genres through a contemporary imagination.

Alis/Filliol’s work is not only a work of sculpture, but also a work on sculpture: on its history, its genres, and its traditional techniques. For example, in the series of works Fusione a neve persa (2008–2010), foundry wax is poured into a mold made of compressed snow; from a transient material, the wax is then elevated to a final form, reversing the traditional “lost wax” technique. Then there is Fratelli (2014), a pair of grotesque heads modeled in industrial grease, in a precarious and always reversible way; the “unfinished,” a fundamental category in the history of sculpture since Michelangelo, becomes “unfinishable.” Since 2015, with the series The Family, the duo has pushed their inclination for figuration to the extreme. The starting point is the repertoire of formats, poses, and models from nineteenth-century academic sculpture (especially commemorative busts), though marred by a rough and brutal workmanship. Alis/Filliol’s dedication to sculpture is exclusive but does not exclude other media such as performance, drawing, photography, and film.

With the Project Room initiative, the Foundation offers its spaces and expertise in the conception and realization of artistic projects to young artists under 40, also promoting a series of educational activities organized by the Educational Department to guide even the youngest in discovering contemporary art.