54th Venice Biennale 2011
Promoted by the Italian Pavilion, on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of Italy Unification

07 – 11 June 2011
private view: Tuesday 7th June, 18:00 – 21:30
Opening times: Monday to Friday 10-8pm; Saturday-Sunday 10-4pm

Italian Cultural Institute, London
Director – Carlo Presenti
39 Belgrave Square, London SW1X 8NX
Tel .020 7235 1461 www.icilondon.esteri.it
For more information please contact : 0207 235 1461

The  exhibition of the Strata Series  by Quayola at the Italian Cultural Institute in London,  represents the contribution of the Institute  to the Italian Pavilion at the  54th Venice Biennale 2011. Thanks to an idea of  Vittorio Sgarbi,   the Directors of  Italian Cultural Institutes in the world  were  requested to propose one or more artists  to exhibit  in their premises  during  the Biennale for this special year of celebrations of the 150th anniversary of  Italy Unification.  The artists have been selected by a panel of experts chaired by Sgarbi.  The exhibitions will be promoted by the Biennale through a catalogue and a video (music score by Maestro Ennio Morricone)   screened in the Italian Pavilion.  Carlo Presenti, is very proud of having chosen Quayola, whose work has aroused great enthusiasm within the panel of experts.

Strata is an ongoing project begun in 2007, compromising of a series of films, prints and site-specific, immersive installations. The term ‘Strata’ defines a geological formation constructed of multiple layers of rock; it refers specifically to the idea of relative time, whereby each layer is differentiated from the next through its definite characteristics, its porosity, its texture, its colour, composition. In short it defines a manner of identifying breaks within organic evolution, a visual metaphor for a history composed not so much as a linear process but as an accumulation of signifiers over time: what is known in geology as deep time. It is within the exploration of this ‘depth’ that the project ‘Strata’ takes form, toying with the construction and deconstruction of our solidified perception of classical art, architecture and iconography.
Operating within the landscape of classical aesthetics; the geometric perfection which lies behind the figuration of the Renaissance, the opulence of the Baroque, or the rigour and integrity of Gothic architecture, Strata strives to reach and unveil what lies beneath the figurative complexity of each icon and structure. It delves under the surface of the image, deconstructing it, reducing it to its essential co-ordinates, colours, geometries; stripping it of its symbolic function. Yet through this very process Strata also constructs; generating topographic maps, linear pathways and structures which pulsate, scatter, hang suspended diverging from the origin to the point of another origination; the production of a living abstract landscape. Through this metamorphic process, Strata not only aims at altering one’s perception of the iconic symbolism contained within the architectures but renews an interest in the calculative, generative and arithmetical qualities that lie dormant behind the details of a masterpiece.

The Strata artworks are the result of studies and explorations of the original masterpieces themselves, delving beneath their figurative appearance and looking at the very rules behind the composition, colour schemes and proportions of each. It is a precise process aimed at creating new contemporary images based on universal rules of beauty and perfection. Documenting the improbable collisions between classical figuration and contemporary abstraction, the Strata Series aims at creating an harmonious dialogue between worlds that may appear very distant from one another, but in fact share so much in common.

www.quayola.com

Download Press Release
http://www.quayola.com/PDF/quayola_biennale2011.pdf

Download Strata Series Info:
http://www.quayola.com/PDF/strata_series.pdf