Fondazione In Between Art Film is delighted to announce the publication of a richly illustrated catalogue of Penumbra, the group exhibition commissioned and produced by Fondazione at Complesso dell’Ospedaletto, Venice, from April 22–November 27, 2022, on the occasion of the 2022 Venice Biennale.
Edited by Alessandro Rabottini and Leonardo Bigazzi with Bianca Stoppani, this publication marks the end of a journey that began in December 2020 with the production of a series of moving image–based works that Fondazione In Between Art Film commissioned to Karimah Ashadu, Jonathas de Andrade, Aziz Hazara, He Xiangyu, Masbedo, James Richards, Emilija Škarnulytė, and Ana Vaz. Around the films and videos conceived by these eight international artists, the Fondazione developed its very first institutional exhibition, Penumbra; its accompanying public program, Vanishing Points; and this catalogue, published by Mousse.
Furthering the commitment of the Fondazione in expanding the discourse around moving images with editorial projects, the book reflects on the making of the exhibition as well as offering, for the first time, in-depth essays on the thinking and production processes that led to the works presented in Venice.
The book opens with a visual essay commissioned to Venice-based photographer Giacomo Bianco. As part of the earliest stages of the exhibition’s communication campaign, this atmospheric overture captures the interplay of light and darkness across the lagoon, on the facade of the Chiesa di Santa Maria dei Derelitti, and inside the Complesso dell’Ospedaletto, where Penumbra took place.
The essays by exhibition curators Alessandro Rabottini and Leonardo Bigazzi expand on the methodology behind the commissions, the metaphorical and spatial narrative of the exhibition, and what brings the works together inside the semidarkness of the Ospedaletto.
Mirroring the distribution of the works throughout the two floors of the building, the main section of the book is organized into eight chapters that present stills, synopses, and credits of each film, together with original essays commissioned to writers, scholars, and researchers. Giorgio Vasta, Taylor Aldridge, Filipa Ramos, Barbara Casavecchia, Matt Keegan, Martin Herbert, Bruno Carvalho with Ana Laura Malmaceda, and Francesca Recchia were invited to write, unusually, while the artworks were in the making, thus becoming companions and correspondents for the artists. It’s for this reason that the genres chosen by the writers range from the epistolary to the critical essay and memoir, bringing a heterogeneity of perspectives that goes hand in hand with the diversity of the artistic practices. Moreover, each essay is enriched by archival images, production stills, and research materials that document both processes and moments from the conception and filming.
Between the descriptions of the ground floor and first floor, at the very core of the book are the installation views of Penumbra, which precede an essay by Ippolito Pestellini Laparelli on the scenography of the exhibition he designed with his agency, 2050+, and an essay by Bianca Stoppani and Paola Ugolini about Vanishing Points, the public program they co-curated.
The beautiful layout of this publication is designed by Lorenzo Mason Studio, the firm also responsible for the visual identity and promotional campaign that broadcast the exhibition both online and across Venice throughout the duration of the show.
The book is available now to order online via Mousse e-shop.
For international media inquiries, please contact Sam Talbot:
Matthew Brown, matthew [at] sam-talbot.com / T +44 (0) 7989 446557
For Italian media inquiries, please contact Lara Facco P&C:
Lara Facco, lara [at] larafacco.com / T +39 349 2529989
Claudia Santrolli, claudia [at] larafacco.com +39 339 7041657
Fondazione In Between Art Film was founded in Rome in October 2019 with the mission of promoting the culture of moving images and of supporting international artists, institutions, and research centers that explore the dialogue between disciplines and the boundaries between film, video, performance, and installation. Under the guidance of its founder and president, Beatrice Bulgari, Fondazione In Between Art Film aims to contribute to the international artistic debate by furthering the role and potential of moving images in our time.