Parra & Romero is pleased to presents for the first time in Spain the work by Turi Simeti (1929-2021) in a retrospective exhibition of one of the most recognized exponents of the Italian art scene of the mid-20th century and, perhaps, one of the most committed artists with the generating idea of his project.
We could agree that without repetition singularity is not possible. In Deleuze’s words, “Repetition is a remarkable element against the ordinary. From every point of view, to repeat is to transgress”. The motif chosen by Simeti was the ellipse, an element that, even in its etymology, has a metaphorical meaning. The word ‘ellipse’ it’s a reference to the Greek word ‘élleipsis’ (what is missing) in a context where the circle represented the whole. If metaphorically the circle is the answer, the ellipse would be the quest. Be that as it may, Simeti chose the ellipse and put it into dialogue with itself and within the space of the canvas.
In 1966 Turi Simeti, 5 years after his first exhibition, would establish his studio in Milan, in Sesto San Giovanni, an industrial neighborhood where Felice Valadè, a kind of art patron, prepared a series of spaces for artists’ workshops. In addition to Castellani and Bonalumi, other artists such as Barbanti, Luciano Fabro, Paolo Gallerani and Hidetoshi Nagasawa, among others, began to work in that neighborhood. He was part of the Azimuth Group in Italy (Lucio Fontana, Piero Manzoni, Enrico Castellani, Dadamaino, etc.) and the ZERO movement in Germany (Heinz Mack, Otto Piene, Günther Ueker, Yves Klein, Yayoi Kusama, etc.)
Light, shadow, space, color and the perception of volume were the constants that marked his work. Finding what is different in repetition, through rhythm and structure, an investigation into pattern and method.
Turi Simeti. A Continous Act With a Specific Form it’s is the first retrospective show by the italian artist in Spain featuring works from his early years where the influence of some of his references is evident, going through some of his most important pieces from the 70s and 80s where his work is defined and reaching his last works where he ends up sublimating.
