The Peggy Guggenheim Collection proudly presents “Marina Apollonio. Beyond the Circle”, a comprehensive solo exhibition curated by Marianna Gelussi, running from October 12, 2024, to March 3, 2025. This exhibition celebrates Marina Apollonio (b. 1940), a seminal figure in the international optical-kinetic movement, whose work was both supported and collected by Peggy Guggenheim. The exhibition offers an extensive overview of Apollonio’s illustrious career, emphasizing the precision of her visual investigations across various mediums, including painting, sculpture, drawing, and environmental works. The display showcases her mastery in static and dynamic compositions, black and white contrasts, chromatic experiments, and innovative material techniques.
Marina Apollonio was born in Trieste on November 12, 1940. She attended the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice and began exploring interior architectural solutions in 1960. By 1962, Apollonio delved into visual communication, creating her first metallic reliefs with alternating color sequences, utilizing industrial materials’ inherent properties. Her approach aligns with the optical art movement’s ethos of depersonalized art, countering expressive abstraction. Inspired by the experiments of Gibson, Purdy, and Lawrence, she crafted immersive conditions that engage viewers with a sense of depth beyond mere surface interaction.
In 1965, Apollonio participated in the Nova Tendencija 3 collective exhibition in Zagreb, marking her entry into the international art scene. Over the years, she has had numerous solo exhibitions, including at Il Cenobio Gallery in Padua (1967), Sincron Gallery in Bergamo (1968), Galerie Historial in Venice (1970), and Method Gallery in Vigevano (1975). Her work rigorously explores the phenomenal possibilities of elementary forms and structures, particularly focusing on the circle to achieve maximum visual impact with minimal elements.
Since 1975, Apollonio has created works featuring orthogonal colored lines on black backgrounds, as seen in her 1979 solo exhibition at Galleria Arte Struktura in Milan. Although her public activity diminished in the early eighties, she continued her dedication to study and research. Today, Marina Apollonio lives and works in Padua, where she continues to influence and inspire the field of optical art.
Website: www.guggenheim-venice.it
Location: Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice
Schedule: Oct. 12, 2024 – March 3, 2025
