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Lot Essay
It is difficult to think of Fontana and Manzoni without a mental reference to Castellani, who often exhibited his works together with theirs, and shared difficult times with them. The very fact of wanting to follow paths that were entirely different, united them in an endeavour of innovative investigation of their respective expressive language.
This hexagonal canvas realised by Castellani in 1970, which, on the basis of my investigations in his Archive, seems to be a rare work (there should only be two - three examples in this geometric format in existence), and represents an extremely interesting surface. I have looked for the "thousand" readings from various angles and in different lights: what emerges is a universe in which to lose oneself, sharing the artist's obsession of impressing rhythm on the canvas. Of which the lower part, not by chance, appears free from "dotting". There is a multiplicity of special effects to be found (how many times have I tried?), in accordance with a progression that accelerates its rhythm towards the centre, or else towards the outer limits of the surface. The play of light and dark unfolds, finding an interval in the space devoid of nails, just as in a musical score that demands a lengthy pause.
Even without direct light, Castellani's canvases reveal their universe in full, more calm, less rich in contrasts, but equally vitalised by the movement of the nails. A place in which to project one's own thoughts or, simply, to allow oneself to remain in the uncertainty of being able to discover all the rhythmic solutions that the canvas can offer you.
This hexagonal canvas realised by Castellani in 1970, which, on the basis of my investigations in his Archive, seems to be a rare work (there should only be two - three examples in this geometric format in existence), and represents an extremely interesting surface. I have looked for the "thousand" readings from various angles and in different lights: what emerges is a universe in which to lose oneself, sharing the artist's obsession of impressing rhythm on the canvas. Of which the lower part, not by chance, appears free from "dotting". There is a multiplicity of special effects to be found (how many times have I tried?), in accordance with a progression that accelerates its rhythm towards the centre, or else towards the outer limits of the surface. The play of light and dark unfolds, finding an interval in the space devoid of nails, just as in a musical score that demands a lengthy pause.
Even without direct light, Castellani's canvases reveal their universe in full, more calm, less rich in contrasts, but equally vitalised by the movement of the nails. A place in which to project one's own thoughts or, simply, to allow oneself to remain in the uncertainty of being able to discover all the rhythmic solutions that the canvas can offer you.