Footprints from bygone eras enchant the gaze, while the signs are defined in forms that intersect textures that redesign structures between past and present, symbols of spaces that, uncertain in their ability to exist, might have to reinvent themselves, thus communicating a new meaning. Remains of the Present, Future ruins personal exhibition of Nicolò Andreatta (aka Link Hg), open until 30 November 2020 at the Visioni Altre Gallery in Venice and curated by Adolfina de Stefani, embodies the desire to draw a line of union between what has been and which now remains in the archives of memory, and a present that seeks a place in these remote spaces, through the harmonic combination, which is merged without create any disturbance.The artist conceives and realizes this project during the lockdown and draws inspiration from the great exhibition dedicated to Giambattista Piranesi organized this year by Palazzo Cini, and which leads Nicolò to reflect on the value impressed in the architectural ruins and their possible reuse without forgetting what they have been, the prestige they have had, and the intimate stories that still live in them.

In this regard, it should be remembered that Link Hg turns his artistic research above all towards the creation of non-invasive site-specific interventions in which his graffiti appear in abandoned urban areas with the aim of redeveloping them, resurrecting them from a rejection that had led them to forgetfulness, and sometimes being despised. In the young artist we can deduce the clear desire to transform, just like in an alchemical spell, the remains of the ruins into something new, so that past, present and future merge together while maintaining their own identity and recognizability, and this desire is also traceable in Remains of the present, Future ruins and, as well as in the title of the exhibition.

At the beginning, what emerges from these works seems almost a change of direction on the part of the artist: Link in these cases imprints his marks on paper and on dimensions much smaller than he usually use, like for example the surface of a wall of a building or a large canvas; however, the intrinsic logic that characterizes his path, remains extremely consistent. Because Link not only does draw figures that are confirmed in abstract patterns and rigorous visual verses, but also the support that forms the format of these signs, since they are old prints depicting ruins, act as a refrain to the utility of surfaces that can be relocated to something preexisting. The Piranesi’s prints that Link Hg uses as a basis for tracing his geometries, are the ideal components for his monochromatic and linear constructions; because if in the views of the eighteenth-century’s engraver the Roman giants stand out between light / dark contrasts, incisive and well-marked traits, as well as the volumes played on forms in which imagination and reality are confused, giving life to majestic and never predictable architectures and perspectives, what Link Hg tries to do is to insert another abstract world in these already magical “prints”.

If ruins are usually considered as uncomfortable realities, or as places to be demolished, in these works – exactly as in those of Piranesi – what is in danger of being lost, must be reconsidered with regard to its aesthetic and existence possibilities not yet explored, that is environments that can re-emerge through different and innovative sense codes.

The Visioni Altre gallery, already known for hosting artists and interventions that place their focus on contemporary phenomena, appears as the perfect venue to welcome the creations of Link Hg, which live in this setting highlighting their intention and substantial meaning. It’s not a coincidence that the director and curator of the event, Adolfina de Stefani, from the very beginning of her career, has been observant to the disciplinary and material intersections that can take place; in art for her, in fact, any exploration deserves to be investigated.  Visioni Altre gallery welcomes Link’s creations in a harmonious way, through an ideal walk that projects us into an ancient temples contaminated by a mysterious today to being defined.

Silvia Cegalin

Info:

Link Hg. Resti presenti, Rovine future
14 – 30 November 2020
curated by Adolfina de Stefani
Galleria Visioni Altre
Campo del Ghetto Novo, 2918, Venezia