Press Release. Marisa Merz Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space 25 May 4 November 2018 Mönchsberg [4]

Transcription

1 Press Release Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space 25 May 4 November 2018 Mönchsberg [4] With. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space, the Museum der Moderne Salzburg presents for the first time in Austria and after more than ten years in the German-speaking countries a comprehensive retrospective of the oeuvre of the outstanding Italian artist (b. Turin, IT, 1926). Salzburg, 24 May Spanning five decades, the exhibition Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space at the Museum der Moderne Salzburg offers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to explore the work of Marisa Merz, who is regarded as the only female representative of the Arte Povera. Opening with works from her most recent large drawings and expansive environments, the presentation traces the evolution of Merz s art through numerous paintings and drawings, wire and wax installations, and the enigmatic sculptural heads and faces from the 1990s and 1980s to the mid- 1960s including the so-called Living Sculpture (1966). Quoting a poem by the artist in the exhibition title, s poems round out the installation. One goal of my tenure as director has been to turn the spotlight on eminent women artists with major solo exhibitions. After acclaimed retrospectives of the works of artists including Etel Adnan, Simone Forti, Andrea Fraser, Ana Mendieta, Carolee Schneemann, and, most recently, Charlotte Moorman, we continue this strand in our programming in 2018 with and Anna Boghiguian. An extensive show dedicated to Merz, an outstanding and groundbreaking Italian artist, was one of first projects I envisioned when I started at the Museum der Moderne Salzburg. I am very pleased that, in cooperation with the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Hammer Museum as well as the Fondazione Merz, we now make this vision a reality, Sabine Breitwieser, Director of the Museum der Moderne Salzburg, who organizes the presentation in Salzburg together with guest curator Connie Butler, notes. Press Mönchsberg Salzburg Austria T F presse@mdmsalzburg.at Arte Povera emerged in industrialized Italy in the 1960s and drew attention with works made out of mundane and unconventional poor materials. Rather than promulgating a stylistic or ideological creed, however, the Poveristi articulated their convictions by rebelling against the precepts and restrictions of the art world. In the 1960s, translates the interplay between her roles as artist, wife, and mother into a unique creative idiom. Defying the formal conventions of visual art, she largely relies on pliable materials such as aluminum, copper wire, nylon, wax, and unfired clay. To the artist s mind, her work is not a chronological succession of selfcontained objects; she leaves most of her pieces untitled and undated and remakes and transforms shapes and elements of works in varying arrangements. Although she articulates the unity of art and life perhaps more radically than any other artist, her work and her influence on others are not widely recognized in the international art world until fairly late in her career. With the Golden Lion for lifetime achievement she received at the 55th Biennale di Venezia in 2013 and the major exhibition that was presented in New York and Los Angeles last year, Merz s oeuvre is at long last receiving the international recognition it deserves. In addition to paintings and drawings in an unmistakable style, Merz creates three-dimensional works, for which she often resorts to pliable materials such as aluminum, metal wire, copper, and wax. In 1966 at the time, she 1/3 Press Release. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Rupertinum Betriebsgesellschaft mbh FN Firmenbuchgericht Salzburg

2 thought of her role as mother as no less important than her work on her art her Living Sculpture came into being in her kitchen in Turin: sprawling colossal pipe-like aluminum constructions combining sharp metal edges with soft biomorphic contours. Around the same time, Merz also made a number of other works out of nontraditional materials, including sculptures composed of blankets she rolled up, tied up with leather straps and nylon strings, and staged in collaboration with her husband, the artist Mario Merz, in a performance at the beach in Fregene near Rome in 1970; a wood swing she made for her daughter Beatrice, which blends the formal rigor of minimalist sculpture with child s play; and a series of knit nylon and copper wire objects that includes the iconic Scarpette (little shoes), which the artist sometimes wore. Press T F presse@mdmsalzburg.at In the 1970s, Merz combined and extended her characteristic works made of humble materials and objects copper wire, bowls filled with saltwater, knitting needles in complex installations. After 1975, she began work on a number of Testine or small heads, many of them roughly modeled in unfired clay. From the 1980s onward, the almost exclusively female heads in her drawings and paintings became emblematic of the artist s oeuvre; her formats have grown increasingly larger since the 1990s, a trend that culminates in the most recent works on view in the exhibition, which date from the 2010s. Merz continues to integrate individual pieces into multimedia installations of varying size and complexity. Her paintings and works of graphic art combine complex subjects with collage elements made of a variety of materials such as adhesive tape, mirrors, paper clips, bottle caps, and colored metal pigments. A characteristic example is the group of largeformat works on paper representing winged angels, in which striking beauty contrasts with a surprising absence of sentimentality. The artist s engagement with light and sound, as in the works integrating water or mute musical instruments, are further evidence of her creative versatility. Organized in the United States by the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Curated by Connie Butler, Chief Curator, Hammer Museum, and Ian Alteveer, Curator, Department of Modern and Contemporary Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The presentation in Europe is jointly organized by the Fundação de Serralves Museu de Arte Contemporânea, Porto, and the Museum der Moderne Salzburg. In cooperation with the Fondazione Merz, Turin. Curator at the Museum der Moderne Salzburg: Sabine Breitwieser, Director, with Marijana Schneider, Curatorial Assistant DelMonico Books Prestel has released a publication (in English) accompanying the exhibition. A catalogue containing a selection of texts in German translation is published by the Museum der Moderne Salzburg. 2/3 Press Release. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

3 Accompanying program: Thursday, 24 May 2018, 7 p.m. Opening of the exhibition with Beatrice Merz, Daughter of Marisa and Mario Merz Press T F presse@mdmsalzburg.at Friday, 25 May 2018, 2 p.m. Exhibition talk with Connie Butler, Chief Curator, Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, CA, US, and Sabine Breitwieser, Director, Museum der Moderne Salzburg Friday, 25 May 2018, 3 6 p.m. Women Artists Exhibitions Symposium with VALIE EXPORT, Artist, on Magna (1975) and Kunst mit Eigen-Sinn (1985); Silvia Eiblmayr, Curator, Vienna, from Kunst mit Eigen- Sinn (1985) to Ana Lupas (2008); Connie Butler, Chief Curator, Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, on WACK! Art and the Feminist Revolution ( ); Andrea Winklbauer, Curator, Jewish Museum Vienna, on Vienna s Shooting Girls. Jewish Women Photographers from Vienna ( ) and with Sabine Fellner, Curator, Vienna, on The Better Half: Jewish Women Artists Before 1938 ( ); and Sabine Breitwieser, Director, on her program. Press contact Martin Moser T M martin.moser@mdmsalzburg.at Press Login on website: Username: press Password: Visitor information Museum der Moderne Salzburg Mönchsberg Salzburg, Austria T info@mdmsalzburg.at, Hours: Tue to Sun 10 a.m. 6 p.m., Wed 10 a.m. 8 p.m. During the festival season also Mon 10 a.m. 8 p.m. Admission Mönchsberg Regular 8 Reduced 6 Families 12 Groups 7 Tickets with reduced Mönchsberg lift tariff available at the bottom station. 3/3 Press Release. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

4 Press Images Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky is a Great Space 25 May 4 November 2018 Mönchsberg [4] The use of visual material is permitted exclusively in connection with coverage of the exhibition and with reference to the cited picture captions and copyrights. No work may be cut nor altered in any way. Download: Press Mönchsberg Salzburg Austria User: press Password: Untitled, n. d. Unfired clay, thumbtacks, copper wire, gold leaf, The artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin, Photo: Renato Ghiazza, Courtesy Archivio Merz, Turin T F presse@mdmsalzburg.at Untitled, n. d. Metallic paint, pastel, ink, marker, and adhesive tape on paper, Gladstone Gallery New York and Brussels, Photo: Renato Ghiazza, Courtesy the artist and Gladstone Gallery, New York and Brussels Untitled, 1968 Nylon thread, iron nails, The artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin, Photo: Renato Ghiazza, Courtesy Archivio Merz, Turin 1/4 Pressebilder. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Rupertinum Betriebsgesellschaft mbh FN Firmenbuchgericht Salzburg

5 Untitled, 1975 Copper wire, The artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin, Photo: Renato Ghiazza, Courtesy Archivio Merz, Turin Press T F presse@mdmsalzburg.at Untitled, 1977, Nylon gauze, iron, stone, The artist and Gladstone Gallery New York and Brussels, Photo: David Regen, Courtesy Gladstone Gallery, New York and Brussels Testa (Head), 1984/95 Unfired clay, wax, tin, lead, small steel table, The artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin, Photo: Paolo Pellion di Persano Untitled, n. d. Mixed media with adhesive tape and metal, mirror, The artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin, Photo: Agostino Osio, Courtesy Galleria Christian Stein, Milan 2/4 Pressebilder. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky is a Great Space

6 Press Untitled, n. d. Unfired clay, gold leaf, paint, iron tripod, Collection of Anish Kapoor, Photo: David Regen, Courtesy Gladstone Gallery, New York and Brussels T F presse@mdmsalzburg.at Untitled, 2009/10 Mixed media on paper, stone and clay sculpture, copper sheet, wooden panels, MAXXI Museo nazionale delle arti del XXI secolo, Rome, Photo: Patrizia Tocci, Courtesy Fondazione MAXXI, Rome Untitled, 1977 Table, copper wire, flower, metal rods, Collection of Emilio and Luisa Marinoni, Lurago Marinone, Italy, Photo: Mario Corti, Courtesy Collection Emilio and Luisa Marinoni, Lurago Marinone, Italy Untitled, n. d. Graphite, metallic paint, pastel, ballpoint pen, and adhesive tape on paper, The artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin Photo: Renato Ghiazza, Courtesy Archivio Merz, Turin 3/4 Pressebilder. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky is a Great Space

7 Press Untitled, 1994 Wooden screens with copper wire, The artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin, Photo: Simon d Exéa, Courtesy Archivio Merz, Turin T F presse@mdmsalzburg.at Living Sculpture, 1966, Aluminum, Tate: purchased with funds provided by an anonymous donor, 2009, Photo: Tate, London /4 Pressebilder. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky is a Great Space

8 Exhibition views Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space 25 May 4 November 2018 Mönchsberg [4] All: Exhibition views. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Photo: Rainer Iglar Download: User: press Password: Press Mönchsberg Salzburg Austria T F presse@mdmsalzburg.at Fontana, 2015 (Fountain) Lead, water, engine, desert rose, The artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin Exhibition view. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Photo: Rainer Iglar Exhibition view. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Photo: Rainer Iglar 1/3 Exhibition views. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Rupertinum Betriebsgesellschaft mbh FN Firmenbuchgericht Salzburg

9 Press Exhibition view. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Photo: Rainer Iglar T F presse@mdmsalzburg.at Exhibition view. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Photo: Rainer Iglar Exhibition view. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Photo: Rainer Iglar Exhibition view. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Photo: Rainer Iglar 2/3 Exhibition views. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

10 Press Exhibition view. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Photo: Rainer Iglar T F presse@mdmsalzburg.at Exhibition view. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Photo: Rainer Iglar Exhibition view. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Photo: Rainer Iglar Exhibition view. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Photo: Rainer Iglar 3/3 Exhibition views. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

11 Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space 25 May 4 November 2018 Mönchsberg [4] Wall Texts Intro The Museum der Moderne Salzburg celebrates, who was born in Turin, Italy, in 1926, with a comprehensive retrospective of the oeuvre she has built in five decades. In the 1960s, Merz translates the interplay between her roles as artist, wife, and mother into a unique creative idiom. Defying the formal conventions of visual art, she largely relies on pliable materials such as aluminum, copper wire, nylon, wax, and unfired clay. To the artist s mind, her work is not a chronological succession of self-contained objects; she leaves most of her pieces untitled and undated and remakes and transforms shapes and elements of works in varying arrangements. is regarded as the only female protagonist of Arte Povera, a loose association of artists working in Genoa, Turin, and Rome that also includes her husband Mario (Milan, IT, 1925 Turin, IT, 2003). The Poveristi the label was coined to describe their work in 1967 draw attention with works based on poor and mundane materials. The monumental aluminum Living Sculpture (1966), which came into being in s apartment and grew into a sprawling installation, is first on public display in Turin in Although she articulates the unity of art and life perhaps more radically than any other artist, her work and her influence on others are not widely recognized in the international art world until fairly late in her career. With this exhibition the title quotes a poem by the artist the Museum der Moderne Salzburg is the first institution in Austria to host s art in a literal great space. The most recent pieces are the point of departure for an exploration of the oeuvre that includes her paintings, drawings, and enigmatic sculptural heads and faces from the 1990s and 1980s and reaches back to the artist s beginnings in the 1960s. s poems in the original Italian round out the installation. We also recommend a visit to the open-air sculpture Ziffern im Wald (Digits in the forest, 2003), an igloo by Mario Merz, just outside the museum behind the sculpture terrace. 2000s In the 1960s, finds much of her inspiration in Turin: in the city s distinctive architecture as well as the treasures of local museums such as the Galleria Civica d Arte Moderna e Contemporanea. Throughout her career, Merz is an avid student of art history; she is especially interested in early Byzantine icons, which she admires for their architectonic structure, Italian art, the works of the Renaissance, and the avant-garde creations of the Futurists. Merz s most recent works, which like her very first pieces come into being in her apartment in Turin, are large-format drawings on paper. She uses luminous blues and reds and silver and gold metal crayons. Eschewing preliminary sketches, the artist works directly on the paper. The size of these pictures and the representations of angels and transcendent creatures bring 1/4 Wall Texts. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space Mönchsberg Salzburg Austria T F office@mdmsalzburg.at

12 altarpieces of the Renaissance to mind. The dynamic curved lines, meanwhile, suggest the depiction of movement in the art of the Futurists. The artist has grouped the drawings with small clay sculptures to create a poetic juxtaposition of different materials, dimensions, and techniques. Such delicate interactions reveal Merz s singularly keen flair for texture, space, and composition. Her art rewards attention to nuance also through the use of light and sound, as in the burbling fountain. Fontana (Fountain, 2015) includes a desert rose, also known as the Rose of Jericho, as a gesture toward the perpetual change that is the essence of nature. At the same time, Fontana is a reference to the ongoing transformation of the artist s work. 1990s Throughout the 1980s, s art has been on public display virtually only in group exhibitions. Beginning in the mid-1990s, she is offered opportunities to present her works in major solo shows mounted by museums in several countries. In contrast with the smaller earlier drawings, she now works in large formats. Drawing is a central aspect of Merz s creative process. She experiments with colors and a wide variety of media and materials including graphite, pastel, metal crayons, and even lipstick. As early as the 1970s, Merz develops facial and head forms in her Teste (Heads), small sculptures made of brick earth, wax, or unfired clay. The artist coarsely models the slabs of clay and paints them. Ceramics is a central material in Merz s oeuvre until around 2007, when she abandons it because of the physical strain involved in handling it. She presents the Teste on racks, cast-wax bases, in groups on tables, or integrated into her installations. As in many of her drawings, the faces and heads test the boundaries between figuration and abstraction; as the artist says, the face is a void, a feeling. The transitional zone between the sphere of the divine and the world of humans is also home to her angelic creatures and Madonnas in the drawings and paintings on paper. The work Untitled (2010) in the corner of this room illustrates Merz s concern with the representation of movement. Resembling an air dance, it is recognizably inspired by the visual idiom of the Futurists. A small blue wax sphere resting on the two wooden bars in front of the picture completes the composition. Merz made it from two casts of plain teacups from her kitchen. 1980s began working with materials such as copper wire, wood, and wax in the 1970s. The earliest Teste (Heads), small emblematic unfired clay sculptures of heads with rudimentary faces, date from the middle of the decade; the artist will focus her energies on this series in the 1980s, abandoning her earlier largely abstract works and expansive installations. Her paintings on paper and drawings, another major strand of her output from the 1980s, show her probing the transition between figuration and abstraction. Around this time, she also often works in pencil on small-format canvases, whose structure is an important compositional element in these works. Traveling with Mario Merz, Marisa collects papers and other materials she stores in her studio and integrates with her drawings in assemblages. She almost always works on several pieces at the same time, creating groups of works in the same medium. The pictorial space around the faces 2/4 Wall Texts. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

13 that are the central motifs in these drawings is structured by almost geometric dynamic lines and vectors tracing curved shapes. Music and sound have a presence in s art as well, in the form of wax instruments and musical notations hinted at in sculptures and drawings. Yet the instruments remain mute; only the soft burbling of the fountain sculptures fills the gallery. 1970s Arte Povera and In 1967, opens her first solo exhibition Galleria Gian Enzo Sperone, Turin. That same year, the Italian art critic Germano Celant coins the term Arte Povera poor art to describe the works of a loose association of artists working in Genoa, Rome, and Turin. They share the concerns of the student movement and its critique of the capitalist processes of production. Without framing a common stylistic creed, the Poveristi confront the art world s elitism with simple, ordinary, and non-traditional materials and techniques. Marisa and Mario Merz are key protagonists of Arte Povera. Although or perhaps because Marisa is the only woman among the Poveristi, the significance of her work and her influence on the circle s other members are not adequately recognized at the time. In the 1970s, further expands her already revolutionary repertoire of materials and techniques by branching out into novel pliable and malleable materials. She knits copper wire into objects and geometric shapes that both cover and reveal, or strings it throughout the gallery to create complex site-specific installations interweaving her works with objects she finds in place. Merz also integrates natural elements such as hemp, plants, water, and stones. The perpetual transformation and reiteration of these materials, forms, and objects yield works that feel familiar and alien at the same time and lend them a self-referential quality. This approach emerges as a defining characteristic of the artist s oeuvre. 1960s s earliest extant works date from the mid-1960s. They are created in the family s home in Turin, an apartment that also serves as Mario and Marisa s shared studio. Marisa s life and personal experiences have a profound impact on her development as an artist. Her wedding and the birth of her daughter Beatrice in 1960 are turning points, informing her early creative output and defining the temporal and spatial framework in which s works come into being: Everything had the same priority, Bea[trice] and the things that I sewed; I had the same availability for everything. Making art in her kitchen, Merz starts working with objects and materials that bear a direct relation to mundane domestic chores. In 1966, visitors to the apartment are the first to see her Living Sculpture, which makes its public debut in her first solo exhibition at Galleria Gian Enzo Sperone, Turin, the following year. The monumental pipe-shaped aluminum construction, which the artist has sewn together in her apartment, has a powerful presence; it looks organic, even like a kind of body. Merz subsequently installs a modified and enlarged version of the Living Sculpture as an environment at the Piper Pluri Club, Turin, a nightclub that regularly hosts experimental art. 3/4 Wall Texts. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

14 Merz s work blurs the boundaries between functional objects and artistic creations. A tied-up blanket roll becomes Coperta (Blanket, 1968); the letters of Bea (1968), the familiar form of her daughter s name, are knitted from nylon thread. Altalena (Swing, 1968), a wooden swing, combines the formal rigor of minimalist sculpture with childlike play. 4/4 Wall Texts. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

15 Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space 25 May 4 November 2018 Mönchsberg [4] Works in the exhibition Works are listed in chronological order. Descriptive titles, which have not been authorized as official titles, are not set in italics. Dimensions are given as height by width by depth in both inches and centimeters Turin, IT Living Sculpture, 1966 Aluminum Overall dimension variable, displayed dimensions approx x x in. (250 x 275 x 275 cm) Tate: Purchased with funds provided by an anonymous donor 2009 La conta, 1967 (Counting) Film, 16mm (black-and-white, no sound), transferred to video 2:44 min. Altalena, 1968 (Swing) Wood, metal anchors x x in. (285 x 120 x 150 cm) Bea, 1968 Nylon thread, knitting needles x x 1.94 in. (40 x 90 x 5 cm) Coperta, 1968 (Blanket) Fabric, nylon thread x 3.94 in. (220 x 10 cm) Untitled, 1968 Nylon thread, iron nails 1.94 x 7.88 x 2.75 in. each (5 x 20 x 7 cm) 1/12 List of Works. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

16 Bea in the sand, 1970 Inkjet print (print 2016) x in. (59.4 x 59.4 cm) Photo: Claudio Abate Archivo Claudio Abate Action with Mario Merz and Coperte, 1970 At the beach in Fregene near Rome, IT Inkjet print (print 2016) x in. (61 x 44.1 cm) Photo: Claudio Abate Archivo Claudio Abate Action with Mario Merz and Coperte, 1970 At the beach in Fregene near Rome, IT Inkjet print (print 2016) x in. (61.1 x 43.8 cm) Photo: Claudio Abate Archivo Claudio Abate Action at Rome Urbe Airport, 1970 On occasion of the exhibition opening at the gallery L Attico, Rome, IT, on 28 February 1970 Inkjet print (print 2016) x in. (43.6 x 61.1 cm) Photo: Claudio Abate Archivo Claudio Abate Action at Rome Urbe Airport, 1970 On occasion of the exhibition opening at the gallery L Attico, Rome, IT, on 28 February 1970 Inkjet print (print 2016) x in. (43.6 x 61.1 cm) Photo: Claudio Abate Archivo Claudio Abate Action at Rome Urbe Airport, 1970 On occasion of the exhibition opening at the gallery L Attico, Rome, IT, on 28 February 1970 Inkjet print (print 2016) x in. (43.6 x 61.1 cm) Photo: Claudio Abate Archivo Claudio Abate Action at Rome Urbe Airport, 1970 On occasion of the exhibition opening at the gallery L Attico, Rome, IT, on 28 February 1970 Inkjet print (print 2016) x in. (43.7 x 61.1 cm) Photo: Claudio Abate Archivo Claudio Abate 2/12 List of Works. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

17 Untitled, 1970 Nylon thread, iron knitting needles 8.38 x in. (21 x 29 cm) Gladstone Gallery, New York and Brussels Untitled, 1975 Iron wire, nylon thread 11 x 11 in. (28 x 28 cm) Brass knitting needles, nylon thread x in. (30 x 30 cm) with Scarpette, 1975 At the gallery L Attico, Rome, IT Inkjet print (print 2016) x in. (61.1 x 43.2 cm) Photo: Claudio Abate Archivo Claudio Abate Untitled, 1975 Copper wire 1.38 x 9.06 x 3.38 in. each (4 x 23 x 9 cm) Untitled, 1975 Nylon thread, button 2.75 x 6.69 x 3.13 in. (7 x 17 x 8 cm) Untitled, 1975 Copper wire 5.88 x 2.75 in. (15 x 7 cm) Untitled, 1975 Iron wire, nylon thread 1.94 x 3.94 in. (5 x Ø 10 cm) Untitled, 1975 Iron wire, copper wire 1.56 x 5.50 in. (4 x 14 cm) Iron wire and copper wire 0.56 x 2.19 in. (1.5 x 5.5 cm) Untitled, 1975 Copper wire, steel pole, lamp 3/12 List of Works. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

18 Copper triangles: x in. (280 x 70 cm) 2 rusted metal pipes x 1.19 in. each (600 x 3 cm each) 2 rusted metal bars x 0.38 in. (600 x 1 cm each) Light: Ø in. (Ø 50 cm) Untitled, 1976 Copper wire, nails, canvas 48 component squares 5.88 x 5.88 in. each (15 x 15 cm), canvas 8.69 x 8.69 in. (22 x 22 cm) Overall dimension x in. (285 x 660 cm) Untitled, 1977 Table, copper wire, metal rods, spathiphyllum (spath) x x in. (100 x 150 x 130 cm) Collection of Emilio and Luisa Marinoni, Lurago Marinone Copper wire, iron wire x in. (35 x 120 cm) Private Collection Untitled, 1979 Pastel on panel in iron frame x in. (110 x 140 cm) Untitled, 1977 Nylon lint, iron, stone 6 x Ø in. (15 x Ø 290 cm) The artist and Gladstone Gallery, New York and Brussels Untitled, Graphite on paper x in., framed x in. (47.47 x cm, framed 67.5 x 42.5 cm) Galleria Monica de Cardenas, Milan / Zuoz Graphite on paper x 9.81 in., framed x in. (34.5 x 25 cm, framed 67.5 x 42.5 cm) Galleria Monica de Cardenas, Milan / Zuoz Graphite on paper x in., framed x x 1.19 in. (50 x 34.5 cm, framed 67 x 52 x 3 cm) Collection of David Benatar 4/12 List of Works. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

19 Doppio ritratto, 1981 (Double Portrait) Graphite, paraffin, rose petal on prepared Masonite x 8.69 in. (27 x 22 cm) Untitled, drawings Graphite on paperboard 1 time 9.44 x 7.06 x 0.13 in. (24 x 18 x 0.3 cm), 10 times 9.75 x 7.81 x 0.13 in. each (24.8 x 19.8 x 0.3 cm) Bernier/Eliades Gallery, Athens Untitled, drawings Graphite, pastel, copper coin, ballpoint pen, colored pencil, gold leaf, paraffin, adhesive tape, metallic paint on canvas, paperboard, canvas board From 7.17 x 5.13 in. to x in. (from 18 x 13 cm to 40 x 30 cm) Sedia, n.d. (Chair) Wood, metallic paint, copper wire, nails x x in. (54 x 38 x 35 cm) Untitled, drawings Graphite, colored pencil, watercolor, pastel on canvas 4 times 7.88 x 5.88 x 0.50 in. (20 x 15 x 1.3 cm) each, 2 times 7.06 x 5.13 x 0.69 in. (18 x 13 x 1.75 cm) each, 5.50 x 7.17 x 0.69 in. (14 x 18.2 x 1.75 cm) Untitled, Graphite, pastels, copper on paper x in. (188 x 150 cm) framed Bernier/Eliades Gallery, Athens Testa, (Head) Unfired clay, wax, tin, lead, steel table x x in. (70 x 27 x 32 cm) Table: x x in. (97 x 30 x 63 cm) Untitled, 1989 Unfired clay, galvanized metal, glass cup, red cyclamen, iron tripod x 6.31 x 5.13 in. (26 x 16 x 13 cm) Untitled, 1989 Unfired clay, acrylic paint, wood, copper 5.88 x 3.81 in. (15 x 9.7 cm) Private Collection 5/12 List of Works. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

20 Unfired clay, paraffin 4.50 x 3.94 x 3.75 in. (11.5 x 10 x 9.5 cm) 8 objects on table Unfired clay, paraffin, copper wire, thumbtack, paint, dried leaf, alabaster, plastic, paper, plaster, metallic paint, graphite, colored pigments, metal coin, gold leaf, metallic pigment, pasted, colored pencil, metal table Objects: dimensions variable Table: x x in. (109 x 67 x 30 cm) Unfired clay, gold leaf and paint, iron tripod 2 objects 6.31 x 6.31 x 4.75 in. each (16 x 16 x 12 cm each) Tripod: x x in. (150 x 50 x 5 cm) Collection Anish Kapoor Clay, resin, aluminum tripod 4 x 5 x 5.50 in. (10.2 x 12.7 x 14 cm) The artist and Gladstone Gallery, New York and Brussels Unfired clay, metallic paint, aluminum tripod 6.13 x 3.38 x 3.94 in. (15.5 x 8.5 x 10 cm) Unfired clay, paraffin, metallic paint, gold leaf, enamel paint 5.88 x 4.31 x 5.13 in. (15 x 11 x 13 cm) Unfired clay, thumbtacks, copper wire, gold leaf 7.06 x 6.69 x 7.50 in. (18 x 17 x 19 cm) Unfired clay, paraffin, lead, pigment 6.31 x 4.75 x 3.56 in. (16 x 12 x 9 cm) Generali Foundation Collection Permanent Loan to the Museum der Moderne Salzburg Unfired clay, metallic paint, colored paraffin 7.88 x 7.06 x 4.75 in. (20 x 18 x 12 cm) 6/12 List of Works. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

21 Unfired clay, pastel, metallic paint, paint 7.88 x 7.06 x 4.31 in. (20 x 18 x 11 cm) The artist and Gladstone Gallery, New York and Brussels Unfired clay, plastic, metallic paint, copper disc 5.50 x 4.31 x 3.56 in. (14 x 11 x 9 cm) Untitled, about 1990 Graphite and colored pencil on canvas x 9.63 in., framed x 12 x 2.19 in. (34.5 x 24.5 cm, framed 40.5 x 30.5 x 5.5 cm) Kunst Museum Winterthur, donated by the Galerieverein, Friends of the Kunst Museum Winterthur, 1995 Untitled, about 1990 Graphite and colored pencil on canvas x 9.63 in., framed x 12 x 2.19 in. (34.5 x 24.5 cm, framed 40.5 x 30.5 x 5.5 cm) Kunst Museum Winterthur, donated by Andreas Schweizer, 1995 Graphite, metallic paint, watercolor, ink, tempera, colored pencil on paper x 8.06 in. (29.5 x 20.5 cm) Courtesy the artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin Graphite on paper x 8.06 in. (29.5 x 20.5 cm) Courtesy the artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin Graphite on paper x 8.06 in. (29.7x 20.5 cm) Courtesy the artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin Graphite on paper x 8.25 in. (30 x 21 cm) Courtesy the artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin Graphite and colored pencil on paper x 8.06 in. (29.7 x 20.5 cm) Courtesy the artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin Graphite on paper x 8.06 in. (29.7 x 20.9 cm) Courtesy the artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin 7/12 List of Works. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

22 Graphite and gold paint on paper x 8.44 in. (29.7 x 21.5 cm) Courtesy the artist and Fondazione Merz, Turin Graphite and lipstick on canvas x in. (50 x 40 cm) Graphite, metallic paint, tempera on paper 9.44 x 7.06 x 0.69 in. (24 x 18 x 1.7 cm) The artist and Gladstone Gallery, New York and Brussels Graphite, charcoal, gold paint on paper x in. (100 x 71 cm) Graphite and gold spray paint on paper x in. (100 x 71 cm) Generali Foundation Collection Permanent Loan to the Museum der Moderne Salzburg Graphite and paraffin on paper x in. (58 x 42 cm) Copper mesh, paint, graphite, secured with thumb tacks on wood x x 2.25 in., framed x x 2.50 in. (100 x 70.2 x 5.7 cm, framed 107 x 77.5 x 6.4 cm) Private Collection, New York Graphite, colored pencil, pastel, copper wire, steel and brass nails on canvas x 9.44 x 1.25 in. (29.7 x 23.9 x 3.2 cm) Profilo verde, n.d. (Green Profile) Paraffin, pastel, straw on canvas board 9.81 x in. (25 x 30 cm) Graphite on paper x 9.44 in. (32.9 x 24 cm) 8/12 List of Works. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

23 Graphite and metallic paint on paper x 9.81 in. (35.9 x 24.9 cm) Graphite, metallic paint, pastel, ballpoint pen, adhesive tape on paper x in. (38.8 x 27.8 cm) Diptych Paint and graphite on cardboard x 8.69 in. each (30.8 x 22 cm each) Graphite and pastel on cardboard 12 x 8.69 in. (30.5 x 22 cm) Metallic paint, pastel, graphite, adhesive tape on paper and paperboard 12 x in. (30.5 x 25.5 cm) Graphite and pastel on paper x in. (33.8 x 25.8 cm) Graphite and pastel on paper x 8.25 in. (29.5 x 21 cm) Metallic paint, pastel, adhesive tape on Japanese paper x in. (46 x 34 cm) Metallic paint, pastel, ink, marker, adhesive tape on paper x in. (50 x 44 cm), framed x x 2.25 in. (59.4 x 52.1 x 5.7 cm) Gladstone Gallery, New York and Brussels Wood, paper, thumbtacks, metallic paint, graphite, pastel, binder clip on panel x in. (44.5 x 32 cm) 9/12 List of Works. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

24 Wood, enamel paint, metallic paint, pastel, paraffin, gold leaf, binder clip on panel x 11 in. (55.5 x 28 cm) Newspaper and adhesive tape on cardboard x in. (37 x 27 cm) Graphite, pastel, metallic paint on paper x in. (50 x 35 cm) Untitled, 1993 Copper wire, unfired clay, steel structure Copper spiral: x 126 in. (314 x 320 cm) Clay: 8.69 x 8.69 x 5.88 in. (22 x 22 x 15 cm) Steel base: x x in. (80 x 45 x 112 cm) Copper, paraffin wax, iron Triangle: 1.19 x x in. (3 x 300 x 90 cm) Table: x x in. (102 x 305 x 92 cm) Chair: x x in. (86 x 40 x 60 cm) Stepped table: x x in. (81 x 128 x 45 cm) Untitled, Graphite on paper x in., framed x x 1.19 in. (164 x 150 cm, framed 167 x x 3 cm) Kunst Museum Winterthur, Purchased with funds from the Lottery Fund of the Canton Zurich, 1999 Untitled, Graphite and pastel on paper x in. (150.5 x 150 cm) Bernier/Eliades Gallery, Athens Untitled, 1994 Paraffin, unfired clay, wax, paper, copper support, nylon thread, iron tripod x x in. (170 x 300 x 300 cm) Untitled, wooden screens with copper wire x x 1.19 in. each (150 x 200 x 3 cm each) Generali Foundation Collection Permanent Loan to the Museum der Moderne Salzburg 10/12 List of Works. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

25 Mario Merz and Senza titolo (tavola per Marisa), 2003 [Untitled (table for Marisa)] Iron, glass, acrylic and wooden spear x x in. (100 x 895 x 630 cm) 15 objects of terracotta, marble, resin Dimensions variable Untitled, Mixed media on paper, stone and clay sculpture, copper sheet, wooden panels x x in. (250 x 350 x 96 cm) MAXXI Museo nazionale delle arti del XXI secolo, Rome Untitled, 2010 Mixed media on paper mounted on wood, iron and copper frame, beams, wax Framed x in. (255 x 280 cm) V-A-C Collection, Moscow Mixed media on paper mounted on wood slab x in. (250 x 145 cm) Copper wire, iron Overall dimension variable Enamel paint, metallic paint, pastel, plastic caps, binder clip on paperboard x in. (104 x 71 cm) Metallic paint on alabaster on iron tripod Alabaster x x 0.56 in. (50 x 50 x 1.5 cm) Private Collection Mixed media with adhesive tape on metal, mirror x x in. (220 x 110 x 130 cm) Untitled, 2014 Enamel, pastel, metallic paint, adhesive tape, binder clip on rice paper x in. (252 x 252 cm) The artist and Gladstone Gallery, New York and Brussels Fontana, 2015 (Fountain) Lead, water, engine, desert rose 9.84 x x in. (25 x 90 x 90 cm) 11/12 List of Works. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

26 Untitled, 2016 Enamel, pastel, metallic paint on rice paper x in. (252 x 150 cm) Gladstone Gallery, New York and Brussels 12/12 List of Works. Il cielo è grande spazio / The Sky Is a Great Space

27 Chronology 1926 is born in Turin, Italy, where she still lives She marries the artist Mario Merz (born 1925 in Milan) in Switzerland; their only daughter, Beatrice, is born Merz s earliest works extant today are created in the apartment in Turin, where Marisa and Mario also work. It is there that, in 1966, Marisa first presents her Living Sculpture to guests, which she will keep modifying and elaborating over the next fifteen years. The repeated transformation and reuse of forms and works emerges as a characteristic of the artist s oeuvre. She knits the first Scarpette (Little Shoes) out of nylon yarn Merz s first solo exhibition at Galleria Gian Enzo Sperone, Turin, marks the public debut of her Living Sculpture, which is subsequently installed as an environment at the Piper Pluri Club, Turin. The presentation also includes the avant-garde horror film Il mostro verde (The Green Monster, ) by Tonino De Bernardi and Paolo Menzio, in which the Living Sculpture features as an alien creature. The film La conta (Counting) is shot Merz creates the works Bea and Coperta (Blanket). She participates in the exhibition Arte povera più azioni povere that the art critic Germano Celant curates at the Arsenali dell Antica Repubblica, Amalfi. Celant had coined the term Arte Povera in Merz starts using copper wire as a material for her art. She develops objects and complex three-dimensional installations. At the gallery L Attico, Rome, Merz presents several Coperte as well as copper-wire objects; she also strings the gallery s walls with wire. On the occasion of the exhibition s opening on February 28, she stages an action at Rome Urbe Airport; Mario collaborates with her on another action on the beach at Fregene near Rome Marisa and Mario, under the moniker i Merz, exhibit their work together at the 36th Biennale di Venezia. The Italian architecture and design magazine domus publishes photographs taken in the apartment in Turin that show the Living Sculpture Merz adds paraffin wax to her assortment of materials. She creates the first Testine (Little Heads) out of unfired clay and wax. In her exhibition at L Attico, Rome, she places the Scarpette at the spot where the moonlight falls upon the gallery wall. She also starts experimenting with drawings of faces. 1/4 Chronology Mönchsberg Salzburg Austria T F office@mdmsalzburg.at

28 1976 For the 37th Biennale di Venezia, Merz designs a sprawling wall installation of knitted copper-wire squares For her exhibition at Galleria Salvatore Ala, Milan, Merz transforms the rooms into an environment involving spotlights and strung copper wires. Integrated into the presentation is her poem La stanza del mare In her exhibition at Jean and Karen Bernier s gallery in Athens, Merz fills a washbasin she finds in place with water. She will return to water as an elemental material in works such as Fontana (Fountain, 2015) Merz presents the installation E il naufragar m è dolce in questo mare (And shipwreck is sweet to me in this sea) in her solo exhibition at Galleria Tucci Russo, Turin, and at the 39th Biennale di Venezia. She covers the gallery floor with wrapping paper, on which she arranges works made of wood and wax as well as a metal sculpture representing musical notation The Musée national d art moderne Centre Pompidou, Paris, mounts the first international survey of Italian contemporary art, titled Identité italienne. L art en Italie depuis 1959 à aujourd hui. Merz is invited to design an entire section of the exhibition Merz participates in the exhibition Avanguardia Transavanguardia. Curated by the art critic Achille Bonito Oliva, the show is held in a public setting by Rome s Mura aureliane (Aurelian Walls). She participates in documenta The exhibition Coerenza in coerenza. Dall arte povera al 1984 reunites all artists who have been associated with Arte Povera since its beginnings; the show subsequently travels to Madrid and New York. It is the first time in twenty years that the Living Sculpture is on public display The exhibition The Knot. Arte Povera at the P.S.1, New York, is the first extensive presentation of Arte Povera in the United States with Merz as the only woman among the Poveristi At the 42nd Biennale di Venezia, titled Arte e scienza, Merz shows remakes of works from her 1975 exhibition at L Attico A series of drawings and the fountain sculpture Fontana (1992) are shown at documenta 9 in Kassel Galleria Christian Stein, Milan, presents the artist s first solo exhibition since /4 Chronology

29 1994 A retrospective at the Musée national d art moderne Centre Pompidou, Paris, is Merz s first institutional solo exhibition. Many of the works are left undated, in keeping with the artist s belief that the interaction between them is key. That same year, Merz has her first solo exhibition in the United States, at the Barbara Gladstone Gallery, New York The Kunstmuseum Winterthur presents Merz s first solo exhibition in the German-speaking countries. Inspired by religious images in Byzantine and Renaissance art, her large-format drawings of the time are richly detailed and enhanced by the generous use of gold leaf Over thirty years into Merz s career as an artist, the Galleria d Arte Moderna di Bologna is the first Italian museum to devote a survey exhibition to her oeuvre Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev publishes her book Arte Povera: Themes and Movements (Phaidon) and emphasizes the significance of Merz s influence on her male colleagues and especially on Mario In the exhibition Zero to Infinity. Arte Povera, at the Tate Modern, London, and in the United States, Merz shows a remake of the Living Sculpture and copper-wire mesh screens. Merz is awarded the Special Prize of the Jury at the 49th Biennale di Venezia At the Marian Goodman Gallery, Paris, shows tables, shaped to a large spiral and designed by Mario for her Testine Mario Merz, Marisa s husband and partner, dies on November At the Gladstone Gallery, New York, Merz presents a series of drawings from her exhibition at the Kunstmuseum Winterthur in In their size, visual symbolism, and the use of gold leaf, the works she shows at Galleria Christian Stein, Milan, recall Renaissance altarpieces, panel paintings, and frescoes Large-format drawings on golden backgrounds displayed by Merz at the Barbara Gladstone Gallery, New York, are reminiscent of early modern icons Merz s exhibition at the Museo d Arte Contemporanea Donnaregina, Naples, features large-format works on paper, many pinned to the walls with thumbtacks and staples. 3/4 Chronology

30 2009 For her presentation as part of the group exhibition I classici del contemporaneo at the Museo Nazionale di Villa Pisani, Stra, Merz makes a sculpture out of copper wire that is displayed in an underground cistern A solo exhibition at the Gladstone Gallery, New York, features a group of Living Sculpture painted with flowers For the exhibition. Non corrisponde eppur fiorisce at the Fondazione Querini Stampalia, Venice, Merz installs her art amid the presentation of masterworks of Italian art from the collection The exhibition : Disegnare disegnare ridisegnare il pensiero immagine che cammina is the artist s first presentation at the Fondazione Merz, Turin At the 55th Biennale di Venezia, the artists and Maria Lassnig are awarded the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement The group exhibition Intenzione manifesta. Il disegno in tutte le sue forme at the Castello di Rivoli Museo d Arte Contemporanea presents Merz in the company of the preeminent graphic artists of the twentieth century The Sky Is a Great Space is the artist s first institutional retrospective in the United States. The presentation, which spans five decades of her oeuvre, debuts at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and then travels to the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles The Museum der Moderne Salzburg and Fundação de Serralves Museu de Arte Contemporânea, Porto, are the only two museums in Europe to reassemble the exhibition of s art. It is the artist s first institutional exhibition in Austria and Portugal. 4/4 Chronology