ANADYOMENE. Born from the water
by Roberto Ghezzi
Artistic - Scientific Project
The landscape shapes its own image
Roberto Ghezzi's Naturografie emerge from the waters of the Tuscan Archipelago.
"A residency project for the Cortona artist, renowned for creating works in natural environments around the world."
Anadyomene. Born from the Water by Roberto Ghezzi is an interdisciplinary artist residency project of the Tuscan Archipelago Museum System – S.M.AR.T, which includes 9 municipalities (and the Tuscan Archipelago National Park) located across 7 islands.
Anadyomene is funded by the Tuscany Region through the call dedicated to museum systems 2024 and by the Livorno Foundation thanks to the public notice “Interventions for Art and Culture 2024.”
Ghezzi’s project aims to enhance the connections between the territory and the sites of historical, artistic, and natural interest that the landscape of the archipelago offers in all its richness and variety. It skillfully combines the gaze of mythology, from which the title derives, with contemporary languages, revealing works that emerge from the brackish and fresh waters of the archipelago through a unique and original process that unveils the otherwise invisible image of underwater landscapes.
Anadyomene, meaning “rising/emerging [from the sea],” is one of the epithets given to Aphrodite, who, in different ways, we see being born as a woman from the foam of the sea, and it refers to the mythological origins of the Tuscan Archipelago itself. Indeed, drawing inspiration from these narratives, a popular legend later connects the story of the goddess of love and beauty to that of the archipelago when Aphrodite loses or lets fall seven pearls from her necklace, which slide into the waters off the Tuscan coast, where instead of sinking, they transform into islands that rise from the sea, showcasing their multifaceted wonder and splendor that has always enchanted the eyes and hearts of those who visit or inhabit them.
Specifically, the canvases created by Ghezzi—named Naturografie, a neologism he invented—are made through a process that allows nature itself to leave traces on eco-sustainable supports placed in natural environments for long periods. The artist, who has worked in various landscape contexts both nationally and internationally, seeks and prefers aquatic habitats such as lakes, rivers, lagoons, and seas, as they are naturally suited for sediment deposition.
The artistic project promoted by S.M.AR.T and specifically designed around the work of the Cortona artist has been divided into an initial residency phase, entrusted to the Italo Bolano ETS Foundation (a partner organization of the system), during which the artist installed six canvases (each approximately 5 meters long by 2 meters high) in the waters of the Tuscan Archipelago.
The six works were installed in strategic locations chosen by the artist in collaboration with scientists and various professionals based on the artistic-scientific interest of the sites, involving brackish, thermal, and freshwater environments of the Tuscan islands: on Elba Island, the red pond of Conche near Rio Marina within the Mining Park; in the municipality of Capoliveri, the port of the Gulf of Mola and the aquifer of the Ginevro Mines at -54 meters below sea level; in Portoferraio, the San Giovanni thermal baths; the port of Capraia Island; and Cala Maestra on Montecristo Island, a state nature reserve managed by the Carabinieri Biodiversity Department of Follonica, which for the first time has hosted an artistic installation.
After a placement period of about three months, the canvases were retrieved to begin the second and final phase of the project, which involves the scientific study of the collected fabrics and the waters, conducted by the CNR of Pisa. This phase will include an artistic-scientific conference during which the results of the analyses and the creative process will be made public, along with the publication of the proceedings, and the realization of an exhibition showcasing the entire body of works created during the residency.
The exhibition, designed to be itinerant and hosted in some of the museum realities adhering to S.M.AR.T across the seven islands, will also be an opportunity to promote a public program in collaboration with the project’s partner entities, aimed at engaging the local community through educational workshops for adults, children, and special audiences, specific pathways for schools, talks, guided tours, and various types of meetings.
It is important to note that, as often happens with Ghezzi's artistic and conceptual work, the combination of art and science remains a cornerstone of the artist's expressive investigation. The realization of Anadyomene was indeed overseen by the entire scientific-technical committee of S.M.AR.T, composed of professionals, researchers, and university faculty, officials from Superintendencies, archaeologists, geologists, contemporary art historians, paleontologists, architects, and museologists. Furthermore, the project benefits from the partnership and support of third-sector entities present in the area, both nationally and internationally.
"The result is works in which nature and the landscape authentically manifest themselves, triggering an unprecedented dialogue between art, science, and ecology."
— Roberto Ghezzi
Roberto Ghezzi
Roberto Ghezzi was born in Cortona (AR) in 1978. His training began in the family sculpture studio and was refined at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence. He started exhibiting in the 1990s, with his early works related to painting. His entire body of work is rooted in a strong interest in the natural landscape, which he initially explored through both pictorial representation and “field” experiments in direct contact with the natural environment. This study was pursued over a decade, starting from a scientific approach to the in-depth examination of organic reality, taking on a conceptual form through material.
In the early 2000s, he presented works related to this research, matured over the years. These innovative creations arise from studies and experiments on natural, often untouched, locations, and the title Naturografie© embodies the foundational concept of both the final result and the process. The latter is an integral part of the work, representing a journey to the origin of the relationship between artist and nature, where the support serves as a space for communion between the two. The artist creates with nature but simultaneously oversees every phase of the creation: from determining the initial variables, to the time factor, up to the final form.
Roberto Ghezzi has completed dozens of artistic residencies, experimental research, and environmental installations, not only in Italy but also in remote locations around the world, such as Alaska, Iceland, South Africa, Norway, Tunisia, Patagonia, Denmark, North Macedonia, Greenland, and the Svalbard Islands. He has realized artistic projects in collaboration with important scientific research institutes, including CNR ISMAR, CNR IOM, CNR ISP, and ARPA.
www.robertoghezzi.it
