SRISA Gallery of Contemporary Art

Via San Gallo 53r, 50129 Florence, Italy 055-4627374

http://www.santareparata.org/gallery/gallery_home.html

Opening: November 24th 2009, 6:30pm-8:00pm

The show will be visible from November 24th- December 15th from 12pm to 10pm

The exhibition entitled “wALL” will open at the SRISA Gallery of Contemporary Art on November 24th. Local, national and international artists were asked to participate in this installation by sending a short written description of a personal work of art or project. The student artists at Santa Reparata, along with Rebecca Olsen (author of the project), and other SRISA faculty installed the exhibition by taking these written statements about singular works and transferring the text by hand onto the walls of the gallery. “wALL” is a project that speaks to creative process, and to the possibilities that technology now affords the artistic community. The gallery, typically a place we go to see works by specific artists or collective exhibitions relating to one or more ideas, becomes an open forum for all creative ideas.

“wALL” was open to participation by artists at various stages of their careers. Thus, students and teachers, conceptual artists and painters are present in this project and their ideas sit side by side on the walls of the gallery. Starting with a small network of people, many participants were asked to forward the invitation on to other artists, permitting the project to grow naturally and encompass artists from around the world who speak different languages, but share the common language of art.

The fact that there are more than 100 artist participants in the exhibition from all over the world is testimony to the ease and speed with which information is shared and transmitted in 2010. Now, more than ever, is it possible to communicate, collaborate, and share ideas instantly. At the same time, however, the benefits of technology can have an inverse effect by over-saturating us with images, sounds, and information. To participate in this exhibition as a viewer, we must pause to read, visualize and reflect, thus slowing down the process by which we absorb and process information.

Student artists at SRISA were asked to participate, not only in the physical installation of the work on the walls, but also in the visual concept and layout of the exhibition. The resulting installation echoes the ideas generated by the collaborating students on “how ” the work should be viewed and provides one with a behind-the-scenes glance of one level of the installation’s creative process.

Participating Artists: Aleksandar Mladenovic, Lynne Allen, Alessandra Angelini, Associazione delle Meraviglie, Peggy Badenhausen, Janet Ballwey, Elena Barthel, Jill Bedgood, Melissa Belmontes, Wolfgang Berkowski, Yusuf Bhopal, Arielle Bielak, Leonora Bisagio, Henriette Braendlin, Katherine Brown, Laelle Busche, Vittorio Cavallini, Antonio Catelani, Susan Cheal, Carmon Colangeo, Michael Connors, Michelangelo Consani, Allison B.Cooke, Marc Cote, Neal Cox, Cathy Cunningham-Little, Davide Daninos, Michele Dantini, Meredith Dean, Paolo DeBassi, Craig Dongoski, Yvette Dubinsky, Ryan Michael Eick, Gene Elder, Michael Ehlbeck, Peter Everett, Diane Fox, Mindy Ann Frankfurth, Pietro Gaglianò, Eloise Ghioni, Laren Gibson, Wayne Gilbert , Karen Caldwell Hogensen, William Hawk, Charles Heranval, Jacqueline Hershman, Jessica Houston, Jennifer Ishimatsu,Maralyn Jolly, Soomin Jung, Joanna Kidd, Mikael Kihlman,Guy Langevin, Jayne Lawerence, Catherine Lee, Stefano Loria, Gray Lyons, Charles Massey, Gloria Marco, Keith McBride, Kenda North, Dennis Olsen, Paul-Flavien, Enriquez-Sarano, Olga Pavlenko, Ambra Pittoni, Ron Pocrasso, Marco Raparelli, Dominick Rapone, Luis A. Rodriguez, Cindy Root, Ornella Rovera, Lydia Ruyle, Erik Micael Ryan, Vidia Santosh, John Sarra, Christopher Sauter, Luca Scarabelli, Don Seastrum, Christine Serchia, Elizabeth Shabani, Roman Shustrov, Rana Siegel, Patricia Silva, Donna Simon, DeAnna Skedel, Andrew Smaldone, Susan Stang, Charles Steckler, Stan Strembicki, Christine Style, Tomoko Sugahara, Tereza Swanda, Gary Sweeney, Michela Tallone, The Skrauss, Cindy Tsai, Kristelle M. Ulrich, Camille Van de velde, Ivano Vitali, April Volmer, Gwen Walstrand, Dan Welden, Regan Wheat, Linda Wilson, Amy Worthen