Homage to Italian Sculptor Arnaldo Pomodoro

Bill in front of the 'opening' piece, Le Battaglie ("The Battles" 1995), which Pomodoro says was inspired by Paolo Uccello's "La Battaglia di San Romano" ("The Battle of San Romano" - first half of 1400s) in Siena. (Hisham Matar's "A Month in Siena" has many incisive pages devoted to this painting.)

Italian sculptor Arnaldo Pomodoro died a little over 2 weeks ago, June 22, the day before his 99th birthday. His works are prominently featured in Rome, including his "smooth-skinned orb slashed to reveal a complex core"--to borrow from the New York Times obit here in front of the Farnesina (the Italian Department of State/Foreign Affairs). To mark his passing from his extraordinarily fruitful life - to the end - we are reprinting here our June 2023 review of an extensive and educational (for us) exhibit of his works in the Fendi-restored Palazzo della Civilta' Romano in EUR.

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A little late to the game, we "discovered" Arnaldo Pomodoro, thanks to a newspaper ad on the opening of a new exhibition of some of his large-scale works at Fendi's gallery at the restored Palazzo della Civilta' Romano in EUR. It's not that we hadn't seen his work before - we have long appreciated the globe/sphere in front of the Farnesina, the Italian "state department" in Rome. His "sphere within a sphere" are all over the world, we now know.

The exhibition at Fendi  - Il Grande Teatro delle Civilta' - "The Great Theater of Civilizations" - is remarkable for its installation of numerous enormous works - on the scale of Richard Serra's (though Pomodoro's are one-sided - one cannot walk in and around them).

The Palazzo (also known as the "Square Coliseum") is itself so imposing that at first we found Pomodoro's works installed outside of it simply too small and squatty.

Case in point, right.  Dianne tries to figure out what it is - against the backdrop of a much more imposing statue from the building's original design. Turns out it's Agamemnon, and the design was for a Greek theater production in 2014 in Siracusa and so, makes sense. It wasn't designed for this place.

Two aspects of the exhibit appealed to us. First, the delight of children grooving to the artwork, as at left.

Second, the excellent and informative flat material that gives shape to Pomodoro's lengthy career. He's about to turn 97 (the English language Wikipedia entry says his active years WERE 1954-2005 - whoops!). These are displayed in bright, large glass cases, slide-out drawers - both vertical and horizontal. We were intrigued by his work in the graphics medium.

And we learned about the placement of his works around the world. Newspaper articles and drawings showed that one of his obelisk-type sculptures had been installed on the Gianicolo, in a highly visible but unlikely spot - the traffic circle on the way up to the Bambino Gesu' Hospital that hosts the large entrances to the bus parking for the hordes visiting St. Peter's and the Vatican (you can also access the Caput Mundi shopping mall Bill wrote about recently from this underground parking venue). Below is the sketch - but it must have been there because there also were photos of it being installed. We missed it "in the flesh."

Left, Dianne checking out one of the drawers with sketches, newspaper articles, graphic works, and explanations. (If only my kitchen drawers worked this well!)

A hand-out at the exhibition shows the location of Pomodoro's works around Rome. We later were on a tour of Palazzo dello Sport (Nervi's ground-breaking building for the 1960 Olympics; Ali - as Cassius Clay - won his gold medal here), which features a Pomodoro obelisk in another once-traffic-circle (named Piazzale Pier Luigi Nervi), now abandoned and rather forlorn.

The photo at right shows the condition of the piazza and statue.

We've heard the complaint (and are tempted ourselves) to view Pomodoro as a "one-trick pony." If you unwrap the obelisk, it looks like the flat pieces. The shapes are similar throughout his work. 

The exhibition at Fendi ends with a newer piece (1996-97, below) that is a complement in white to the introductory Le Battaglie that leads off this post.

To us, it didn't seem to move the needle much in terms of his art. 

The title of the work is Movimento in pieno aria e nel profondo ("Movement in free space and in the depths" - or something like that!).

Close-up at right.

On the other hand, if one looks at his costumes, graphic work, public art - the way it is placed in the world, his vision seems greater.  

We close with some of these other pieces, including our having fun with them - which is a benefit of art as well.

If you can't get to Rome to see Il Grande Teatro delle Civilta' - "The Great Theater of Civilizations" before it closes October 1, the website is comprehensive. It includes all the works, plus a visual tour, plus a map of his works all over the world.

In Italian and English here: https://arnaldopomodoro.fendi.com/en/

Dianne

RST with one of the costumes, this one from 1986 for Didone (Dido), one of my favorite tragic heroines. .

There's a relationship between the faux "printer's wheel" outside (Rotativa di Babilonia - Babylon's wheel, 1991) and the graphics-type work inside (Tracce I-VII - Traces 1-7, 1998) (above and below).

A close-up of Il cubo ("The Cube," 1961-62), one of the first works in the show, and one one of us found intriguing - maybe because it had some "white space" in it.

Below is the most recent of Pomodoro's sculptures in the exhibition - Continuum, 2010 - one that seems to highlight made-up hieroglyphics. Pomodoro's large, rectangular pieces remind us of Richard Serra's, but the Italian sculptor's are very much 2-dimensional with bas relief, not the 3-dimensional, run-around-and-through-it of Serra.

The artist with his barbed take on Fendi's Peekaboo bag - on display during the exhibition: 

(Image credit: Carlos & Dario Tettamanzi)

Sculptor Arnaldo Pomodoro and Fendi Put On a Show

Bill in front of the 'opening' piece, Le Battaglie ("The Battles" 1995), which Pomodoro says was inspired by Paolo Uccello's "La Battaglia di San Romano" ("The Battle of San Romano" - first half of 1400s) in Siena. (Hisham Matar's "A Month in Siena" has many incisive pages devoted to this painting.)

A little late to the game, we "discovered" Arnaldo Pomodoro, thanks to a newspaper ad on the opening of a new exhibition of some of his large-scale works at Fendi's gallery at the restored Palazzo della Civilta' Romano in EUR. It's not that we hadn't seen his work before - we have long appreciated the globe/sphere in front of the Farnesina, the Italian "state department" in Rome. His "sphere within a sphere" are all over the world, we now know.

The exhibition at Fendi  - Il Grande Teatro delle Civilta' - "The Great Theater of Civilizations" - is remarkable for its installation of numerous enormous works - on the scale of Richard Serra's (though Pomodoro's are one-sided - one cannot walk in and around them).

The Palazzo (also known as the "Square Coliseum") is itself so imposing that at first we found Pomodoro's works installed outside of it simply too small and squatty.

Case in point, right.  Dianne tries to figure out what it is - against the backdrop of a much more imposing statue from the building's original design. Turns out it's Agamemnon, and the design was for a Greek theater production in 2014 in Siracusa and so, makes sense. It wasn't designed for this place.

Two aspects of the exhibit appealed to us. First, the delight of children grooving to the artwork, as at left.

Second, the excellent and informative flat material that gives shape to Pomodoro's lengthy career. He's about to turn 97 (the English language Wikipedia entry says his active years WERE 1954-2005 - whoops!). These are displayed in bright, large glass cases, slide-out drawers - both vertical and horizontal. We were intrigued by his work in the graphics medium.

And we learned about the placement of his works around the world. Newspaper articles and drawings showed that one of his obelisk-type sculptures had been installed on the Gianicolo, in a highly visible but unlikely spot - the traffic circle on the way up to the Bambino Gesu' Hospital that hosts the large entrances to the bus parking for the hordes visiting St. Peter's and the Vatican (you can also access the Caput Mundi shopping mall Bill wrote about recently from this underground parking venue). Below is the sketch - but it must have been there because there also were photos of it being installed. We missed it "in the flesh."

Left, Dianne checking out one of the drawers with sketches, newspaper articles, graphic works, and explanations. (If only my kitchen drawers worked this well!)

A hand-out at the exhibition shows the location of Pomodoro's works around Rome. We later were on a tour of Palazzo dello Sport (Nervi's ground-breaking building for the 1960 Olympics; Ali - as Cassius Clay - won his gold medal here), which features a Pomodoro obelisk in another once-traffic-circle (named Piazzale Pier Luigi Nervi), now abandoned and rather forlorn.

The photo at right shows the condition of the piazza and statue.

We've heard the complaint (and are tempted ourselves) to view Pomodoro as a "one-trick pony." If you unwrap the obelisk, it looks like the flat pieces. The shapes are similar throughout his work. 

The exhibition at Fendi ends with a newer piece (1996-97, below) that is a complement in white to the introductory Le Battaglie that leads off this post.

To us, it didn't seem to move the needle much in terms of his art. 

The title of the work is Movimento in pieno aria e nel profondo ("Movement in free space and in the depths" - or something like that!).

Close-up at right.

On the other hand, if one looks at his costumes, graphic work, public art - the way it is placed in the world, his vision seems greater.  

We close with some of these other pieces, including our having fun with them - which is a benefit of art as well.

If you can't get to Rome to see Il Grande Teatro delle Civilta' - "The Great Theater of Civilizations" before it closes October 1, the website is comprehensive. It includes all the works, plus a visual tour, plus a map of his works all over the world.

In Italian and English here: https://arnaldopomodoro.fendi.com/en/

Dianne

RST with one of the costumes, this one from 1986 for Didone (Dido), one of my favorite tragic heroines. .

There's a relationship between the faux "printer's wheel" outside (Rotativa di Babilonia - Babylon's wheel, 1991) and the graphics-type work inside (Tracce I-VII - Traces 1-7, 1998) (above and below).

A close-up of Il cubo ("The Cube," 1961-62), one of the first works in the show, and one one of us found intriguing - maybe because it had some "white space" in it.

Below is the most recent of Pomodoro's sculptures in the exhibition - Continuum, 2010 - one that seems to highlight made-up hieroglyphics. Pomodoro's large, rectangular pieces remind us of Richard Serra's, but the Italian sculptor's are very much 2-dimensional with bas relief, not the 3-dimensional, run-around-and-through-it of Serra.

The artist with his barbed take on Fendi's Peekaboo bag - on display during the exhibition: 

(Image credit: Carlos & Dario Tettamanzi)

2,000 years in one day - Rome through "Open House Roma"

James Turrell couldn't do beter than this great view from the courtyard of Palazzo INAIL

We basically subscribe to the adage that to see Rome, even a lifetime isn't enough.  But sometimes we challenge that.

An angel?  What part of "Neopythagoreanism" was this?
In the subterranean Basilica of Porta Maggiore

On one May day last year, we managed to go from 1st century AD to 21st century, with a few stops in between.  We did this sweep through history with tours of buildings that day, thanks to the Open House Roma (that's it in Italian) program that has been in place annually for the past few years.Of the hundreds of offerings over 2 days, we picked on a Sunday:

1) The underground (probably always was) Basilica of Porta Maggiore, dating to the 1st to 2nd century.

2) The Palazzo INAIL, a 1926-33 building in the city center.

3) The reputed home of Cola di Rienzo, dating from the 11th-12th centuries.

4) Two EUR buildings - the Palazzo Uffici, and

the Square Coliseum, just restored thanks to the fashion house Fendi (1938-43, restored 2017).

None of these is normally open to the public, and so we were anxious to get advance tickets.  

So, what and why.

Interesting set table - stuccoed 2,000 years ago, again
on the walls of the subterranean Basilica of Porta Maggiore

The basilica is still in the midst of its recuperation.

The underground basilica was a real treat, as we thought it might be, since it's rarely been open and can host only a few people at a time. We had no idea it was even there; its entrance is tucked in among the tumult of Piazza di Porta Maggiore.  We didn't even see it when we did our "Wall Walk."  

The basilica was discovered only in 1917, by accident, and has been the subject of archaeological restoration and analysis since. It's now 40 feet underground and has elaborate decorations in stucco.  It was excavated from tufo rock.  Apparently it was a sacred spot for devotees of a little-known cult called Neopythagoreanism. Originating in the first century BC, this was a school of mystical Hellenistic philosophy that preached asceticism and was based on the writings of Pythagoras and Plato. We felt privileged to be able to get that close to these 2000 year-old markings of an ancient civilization.

We had to focus our attention 20 centuries later when we showed up at Palazzo INAIL, which sits at the head of via 4 Novembre, right off Piazza Venezia.  The large photo at the top was taken inside the palazzo.

Roman architects of any era love their
spiral staircases.

We'd been by the building hundreds of times and basically hadn't noticed it.  It was constructed in the Mussolini era for the bureaucracy that dealt with those considered "unfortunate," or without support.  

The view from Palazzo INAIL down via 4 Novembre into Piazza Venezia.

Palazzo INAIL is amazingly sited on the hill above villa Colonna and has superb views of the city, rarely available to the public.  The architecture is some of the best of that period, in our opinion.

Even here, Roman ruins were found, and preserved.

One of many great views from Palazzo INAIL.

Again, a Turrell-like framing.

Part of Mussolini's demolition projects, Casa dei Crescenzi stands alone
at the end of the block - at right.

Crowds lining up to get into Cola di Rienzo's home.

Then we ran to get to what we thought was another prize, Casa dei Crescenzi or Cola di Rienzo's home. 

This is a fascinating building, partly because Mussolini tore down everything else in the area, leaving only this building--at the pleading of one of his architects.  It has some of the best 'spolia' in the city - being made up of parts of ancient Rome.  The building has had quite a troubled history, including being a stable at one point. 

A great example of use of 'spolia.'

The disappointment was that the organization occupying the building wanted to proselytize about their work, rather than let us see and understand the building.  We pitied the people waiting in long lines to get in - only to be sat down and lectured to.

But you had to sit through 2 lectures to see much inside.

And there was much to see!

Mussolini featured in the bas relief on Palazzo dei Uffici
(along with fellow visitors)

We then headed out to EUR, one of our favorite places, and managed to squeeze in for a tour of the building known as "Palazzo Uffici," - "Offices building," from the 1942 world exhibition that never occurred.  We know this building well, and had been in its bomb shelter previously, but the tour of the upstairs and offices, including a head of Mussolini ignominiously sitting on the floor, was a delight.

That's Mussolini's head on the right (in back, some great frescoes of the period).

And he thought he'd be on a big statue!

This building too has its version of the spiral staircase.

The furnishings, some by Gio' Ponti, as we recall, were lovely, but
of questionable comfort.

Palazzo Uffici is at right, the Square Coliseum in back.  There's a lively outdoor
market here on Sundays.

Then we capped off our day with a place we desperately wanted to see - the Palazzo della Civilta' Romana, also known as the Square Coliseum. 

View from the rooftop of Palazzo della Civilta' Romana, looking out to the hills and Calatrava's desolate, abandoned swim complex.

It was closed for years, surrounded by cyclone fencing, and in disrepair.  As is the case for many Rome monuments, it was restored thanks to private funding - and advertising.  In this case, Fendi, which was sponsoring the tour of the newly-restored building.  Unfortunately, they announced when we arrived that we could see only the art gallery on the first floor (always open to the public) and the rooftop terrace.  The rest of the floors were closed - to keep their fashion designs secret (bait and switch!).  The rooftop views were spectacular, but we missed the opportunity to see how the building itself was constructed and has been restored.

The Square Coliseum with a Penone sculpture.

Quite a day - and that was just Sunday.  Next up, our itinerary for Saturday, which was equally informative and exciting.

Dianne
For information on Open House Roma 2018, which will be May 12-13, see their web site.