Fabrizio Plessi's first monumental-scale video sculpture presented at the Generali Tower in Milan
07 June 2022 - 10:42
- The work’s title is “I mari del mondo - Omaggio a Zaha Hadid” (The seas of the world – Tribute to Zaha Hadid)
Milan – The first video sculpture on a monumental scale by artist Fabrizio Plessi, "I mari del mondo - Omaggio a Zaha Hadid" (The seas of the world – Tribute to Zaha Hadid), was presented at the Generali Tower, the Company's Milanese headquarters in the CityLife district. The presentation was attended by the artist together with the Chairman of Assicurazioni Generali, Andrea Sironi, and the Group CEO Philippe Donnet.
Commissioned by Generali and conceived as a site-specific video installation, the work interprets the dynamic and, in some ways, dramatic lines of Zaha Hadid's architecture according to a horizontal and expanded, asymmetrical course, interrupted by continuous changes of direction, highlighted by rivers of digital water flowing inside LED screens. The work, located in the main hall on the ground floor of the Generali Tower, will be visible until 20th June.
In the artist's intentions, the work is conceived to reproduce "the eye that flows ceaselessly within the architectural spaces designed by Zaha Hadid", as if it were a sculptural visualisation of such spaces, as well as a metaphor of our time, unpredictable and unstable. Plessi knows how to capture not only the anxiety of our present, but also its convulsive beauty, sublimated by a technological means in which the light of the LEDs and the movement of the electronic flow become means of elevation, sublimation and regeneration of the destructive forces of our time.
The commissioning of Plessi's work, in line with the idea of art as a participatory language and a tool for dialogue and sharing with the community, is part of Generali's broader commitment to sustainability and to a transition towards a more sustainable economy and society. Among the goals of the Group’s commitment are the containment of global warming, the development of climate change adaptation strategies, the reduction of natural resources consumption and the promotion of a circular economy together with the protection and restoration of biodiversity and the prevention of pollution.
A commitment that is expressed through initiatives aiming to share the Company's artistic and cultural heritage not only to celebrate beauty through the work of great artists, but also to build cultural intersections capable of generating ideas and innovation.
Generali Group CEO Philippe Donnet commented: "The exhibition of Fabrizio Plessi's work inside the Generali Tower is an example of the encounter between art and people that, also through new technologies and languages, allows us to promote the value of culture as a vehicle for inclusion and social cohesion. 'The seas of the world - Tribute to Zaha Hadid' is also an important metaphor of our time and helps to strengthen awareness of environmental and climate risks. As part of our strategy, we have defined ambitious goals through which we want to contribute to a just transition and to the creation of a greener and more inclusive society: for Generali, whose ambition is to be a Lifetime Partner, it is a commitment to our people, territories and communities in which we operate".
Fabrizio Plessi commented: “Created specifically for Generali, these Seas of the World emerge from the ancestral darkness of the abyss. Thanks to new digital technologies, they cast a harmonious light on the large space that contains them. Blue, liquid signals and signs, evoking remote riptides and waves, blend and intertwine in the ethereal spatiality of the surrounding space. Zaha Hadid’s architecture dialogues in perfect harmony with the artwork which magically becomes fluid, mobile liquid and light, almost losing its solidity and, as if by a miracle, taking to the skies”.