Tony Cragg: The Forms of Glass

In conjunction with the 60th International Art Exhibition, FAI – Fondo per l’Ambiente Italiano, in partnership with Berengo Studio, presents the exhibition “Tony Cragg: The Forms of Glass“, in the historic Olivetti Showroom in St Mark’s Square in Venice. In sync with the spaces designed by Carlo Scarpa a series of glass sculptures from Tony Cragg’s personal collection are on display to the public, along with a work created specifically for this exhibition by the artist.

Curated by Cristina Beltrami and Jean Blanchaert, the exhibition showcases more than twenty glass sculptures that together with a selection of drawings, again owned by Cragg, capture not only his consolidated expertise with this complex, living material, but also his creative process whereby the graphic stage precedes every creation, becoming – by his own admission – a daily exercise.

Attracted by the extraordinary capacity of the spaces designed by Carlo Scarpa to play host to sculpture, and profoundly struck by his visit to the Negozio Olivetti, Cragg has created a new work, an homage to the great Venetian architect. “Arabesque” is a black-glass sculpture composed of a group of vases of different dimensions, fused together and enveloped by a thick, irregular glass ribbon that, thanks to the master craftsmanship of Nicola Causin, evokes a shape which wraps around itself, hence the title of the work. The inherent rhythm recalls the sinuous nature of the Moorish style – a decorative and architectural mode that is very much a part of the Venetian architectural tradition.