Inaugurated on February 22nd, Fabio Viale‘s Acqua Alta exhibition at the Galleria Poggiali in Florence has remained open a few days before being closed due to the State’s directive to deal with the health emergency. Now, however, the reopening is getting closer and closer and Acqua Alta is one of those exhibitions worth seeing. 

The exhibition consists of two separate installations, one in Via della Scala and the other in the space in Via Benedetta, which emphasize in different ways the artist’s mastery in using stone, shaping it and making it into anything. 

The first of the two installations is entitled The bricole (dolphins) and was presented to the public all over the world during the last Venice Biennale. It is a series of sculptures, about a dozen or so stone monoliths that simulate the famous poles of the lagoon city where small boats, ferries and gondolas dock and also serve as a route and signage for maritime traffic between the canals. The resemblance to the real ones is so impressive that, if you didn’t know, no one would think of the stone by looking at them. 

Fabio Viale’s intent is to make people think about the drama of the high tide, which gives its name to the whole exhibition, by connecting to the climate problem we are experiencing and trying to stimulate in the spectator a thought about the relationship between man and nature. 

The second installation, Root’la, a name that combines the English word “root” and the Italian verb “to roll”. In this case you will be faced with the reproduction of a typical descent present in the quarries of Colonnata. This time, however, among the rough pieces of rock peep out pieces of sculptures, vases, statues, works that have gone bad and thrown away. This installation starts from Fabio’s inordinate passion for the quarries, something he shares with some of the greatest artists in the history of art such as Michelangelo or Arturo Martini. 

Sign Acqua Alta by Fabio Viale among me exhibitions to visit when you can!