A arte Invernizzi gallery presents the exhibition “Fragilità. Visioni di una forza formativa”, curated by Davide Mogetta, which delves into the transformative power of fragility in contemporary art. The show brings together prominent figures from different generations of international art, including Dadamaino, François Morellet, Arcangelo Sassolino, Günter Umberg, and Grazia Varisco.
The exhibition originates from a dialogue between Günter Umberg and Davide Mogetta, focusing on the theme of “encountering fragility,” which has been a constant presence in Umberg’s practice since the 1970s. This theme is approached as both a deeply personal and universally resonant experience.
Today, fragility has re-emerged at the center of artistic reflection, influenced by ecological crises, political upheavals, and social transformations. However, this exhibition does not present fragility merely as a weakness to be protected or a condition to be overcome. Instead, it is explored as a directly formative force. Here, fragility and resilience are not opposing concepts; they coexist within the same creative tension.
The works on display reveal how fragility materializes through medium, form, and presentation. This approach highlights artworks that coexist with fragility, allowing it to be visible and powerful rather than something to be transformed. Fragility is not the end result; it is a fundamental element shaping the very process of creation.
Although the works of these five artists have been exhibited together previously, the relationships proposed in this project are unique, offering an unprecedented experience. This dialogue encourages viewers to reconsider how fragility manifests in artistic practice sometimes as an inner experience, other times as a reflection on the human condition.
On the upper floor, François Morellet’s neon works explore the interplay between geometric rigor and chance, while Arcangelo Sassolino’s creations in concrete, steel, and glass subvert expected solidity, producing a fragile effect. In the same space, Günter Umberg’s early works from the 1970s employ wax and pigment to transform personal experience into abstract visual forms.
Downstairs, Grazia Varisco’s installation Reticenze, created specifically for this exhibition, deforms metal lattices to capture a suspended moment of movement. This work enters into dialogue with selections from Dadamaino’s 1990s cycles, Il movimento delle cose and Sein und Zeit, where lines chasing each other on sheets of polyester make visible a paradoxical gesture: the more complete it tries to be, the more it accepts that it cannot be fully completed.
The exhibition concludes with a recent installation by Günter Umberg. Comprising seven individual works, it generates both an attraction that invites close engagement and a distance that must be maintained to preserve the delicate compositions. The tension between desire and restraint reinforces the conceptual framework of the exhibition.
A bilingual catalogue accompanying the exhibition, featuring an essay by Davide Mogetta, reproductions of the artworks, and updated biographical information on the artists, further deepens the conceptual exploration of fragility as a formative force.
