Mani | May 2018

Michele von Büren of RvB Arts presents the group exhibition

MANI

MANUALITA’
ARMONIA
NARRAZIONE
ITALIANA

with works by

Bato    Leonardo Blanco    Lorenzo Bruschini    Lucianella Cafagna
Chiara Caselli    Alessio Deli    Fantini    Andrea Gallo
Gianlorenzo Gasperini    Vittorio Iavazzo    Arianna Matta
Claire Piredda    Nicola Pucci    Massimo Pulini    Vera Rossi
Alessandro Sicioldr    Luca Zarattini

The exhibition will run until Saturday 22 September
Opening hours: 11 AM-1:30 PM and 4-7:30 PM; closed on Sunday and Monday

Organizer and curator: Michele von Büren of RvB Arts

PRESS RELEASE

RvB Arts is proud to present MANI, literally ‘Hands’, the acronym of Manualità Armonia Narrazione Italiana (Manuality Harmony Narration Italian).

This group exhibition represents the culmination of a long-standing gallery project: the affirmation of an identity centred on young Italian artists which aims to bypass recent trends in contemporary art and put the emphasis back on traditional skills, allowing technical mastery and emotional connection to re-emerge alongside ideas as criteria on which to judge a work of art.
The first edition of MANI thus consolidates the principles which have guided the curatorial choices of the gallery from the very beginning as it has pursued its aim to showcase contemporary art that is concrete, accessible and inclusive:

MANUALITÀ (Manuality): all the artists involved possess solid technical skills;
ARMONIA (Harmony): an ability to harmonise very individual and distinct methods of expression within a common project; NARRAZIONE (Narration): intended as a preference for narrative forms of expression which favour the connection between artwork and viewer; ITALIANA (Italian): all participating artists are Italians whose research has been fundamentally influenced by the rich artistic history and traditions of their country.

RvB Arts intends to repeat MANI every May, involving an ever-growing number of artists who best represent the gallery and its ideas.

MANI also aims to highlight the gallery’s ability to spot and nurture young gifted artists. With many of its artists winning awards, participating in such prestigious events as the Venice Biennale and moving quickly out of the ‘affordable’ bracket, RvB Arts is building a strong reputation for discovering talented newcomers.

For MANI 2018, the gallery has selected artists already well known to its Rome public: the painter and sculptor Bato, fresh from the success of his solo show Jungle; Lorenzo Bruschini, whose highly imaginative works combine dreamlike, mythical references with an elegant, minimalist palette; Roman painter Lucianella Cafagna, who trained in the studio of Pierre Carron, a protégé of Balthus; the photographer, director and actress Chiara Caselli, recently selected for the Biennale of Photography in Moscow; Fantini, who will present his sculptures in bronze and stone which are usually only available in Paris and the Netherlands; Andrea Gallo, winner of the Young At Art award 2015; Gianlorenzo Gasperini, whose large-scale, bronze sculptures were on permanent display at New York’s Opera Gallery from 2001 to 2012; Arianna Matta, who has just concluded her first Paris solo show; Claire Piredda, an artist who uses local ‘Tuscia’ clay for her distinctive terracotta sculptures; Vera Rossi, who held a solo exhibition as part of this year’s Mia Photo Fair in Milan; and Luca Zarattini, whose work combining traditional subjects with the experimentation of materials has won him awards and critical acclaim.

The show also includes two 27-year-old artists who have recently joined the gallery: Alessandro Sicioldr, who has already generated international interest with his highly individual style, and Vittorio Iavazzo who will unveil his first life-size sculptures in paper mache, commissioned by RvB Arts specifically for MANI.

Sicilian painter Nicola Pucci returns to the gallery with new works confirming a masterly technique which has won the attention of important art dealers including Larry Gagosian. Alessio Deli is also participating with one of his sought-after figurative sculptures made from recycled materials; while Leonardo Blanco, who took part in the 53rd Venice Visual Arts Biennale in 2009, selected by the Republic of San Marino, will present one of his trademark resin-covered abstract paintings.

RvB Arts is also delighted to include Massimo Pulini, artist and art historian, who in 2002 was commissioned by the Vatican Museums to paint the ceiling of the entrance to Pope John Paul II’s private library. In 2006, Pulini was invited to hold a solo show at the prestigious Italian Cultural Institute in London curated by Sir Denis Mahon, the renowned British art collector and historian of Italian art.