COURSE DESCRIPTION

Modern Italian art in the 1950s and 1960s took some radically new directions. Some of these, such as abstraction, reflect Italian artists’ role in the international art scene, while others, such as Arte Povera and Spatialism, were primarily Italian movements that came to influence modern art well beyond Italy.

In this course, we explore the wonders of Italian art after World War II. We begin with the diverse movements that developed in Italy following the fall of Fascism and the end of occupation, including Lucio Fontana’s Spatialism, Marino Marini’s modernist take on Italy’s Etruscan heritage, and Arte Informale - an expressionist painting style pioneered by Emilio Vedova.

In the second half of the course we focus on Arte Povera, Italy’s most influential modern art movement. The movement, founded in the 1960s, challenged assumptions about what constituted art but is best known for its radically different approach to materials. The influence of Arte Povera in Italy is hard to ignore, and many of its founders, such as Marisa Merz, Michelangelo Pistoletto and Jannis Kounellis continued making art into the 21st century.

COURSE CONTENT

Session 1: Lucio Fontana and Piero Manzoni - spatialism and the avant garde

Session 2: Marino Marini and modernism in Italian sculpture

Session 3: Emilio Vedova and Arte Informale

Session 4: Arte Povera - Michelangelo Pistoletto and Marisa Merz

Session 5: Arte Povera - Alberto Burri and Jannis Kounellis

Session 6: Arte Povera - Alighiero Boetti, Giovanni Anselmo and Enrico Castellani

LECTURER

Dr Nick Gordon is a cultural historian and artist with an encyclopedic knowledge of European and Australian art. His research on the Italian Middle Ages and Renaissance has won numerous academic scholarships and prizes (including a University of Sydney medal in History and a PhD). He has over fifteen years’ experience speaking about history and art history to university and adult audiences, and regularly takes small groups to major modern and contemporary art events, including the Venice Biennale and Art Basel.

COURSE STRUCTURE

6 x 1.5 hour sessions Each session includes an interactive lecture and time for group discussion and analysis.