The Art Ways exhibition curated by Raffaello Galiotto and now at its second edition, offered visitors to The Italian Stone Theatre the chance to see the cutting edge in the use of machines for artistic processing of stone.
The idiosyncrasy of the mechanical “touch” compared to the manual “touch” of an artist as the only assurance of the authenticity of the work has been overcome; consequently, the proposals by five international artists who have long experimented with numerical stone processing technology – in collaboration with leading Italian companies in the production of machinery, software and tools – give life to five works focusing on the naturalness of stone.
From material to work of art
The spirit of the exhibition, that seeks to highlight the relationship between artistic expression, technology and natural stone, is well exemplified by the work of Nicolas Bertoux: it originates from a single rectangular slab where five sinuous cuts, inspired by the altitude curves on a topographic map, were made using a numerical control water jet machine. Six aspects from this process, recomposed and assembled one on top of the other to create a three-dimensional composition. Arranged vertically, the slab with its mountainous silhouette recalls the monumental entrance to several stone quarries.
In the triptych designed by Raffaello Galiotto, the random distribution of veins in stone is engraved by complex patterns developed by automatic milling-cutting operations, alluding to organic forms and their generating logic.
Nature as inspiration
The surface of the apparently rough marble in the sculpture by Sylvestre Gauvrit turns out to be the outcome of meticulous processing assisted by mechanical tools entirely at the service of the purity of the overall design. The work of Jon Isherwood is inspired by the change of a vegetal form growing and developing inside another material. The colour and veins of stone can express the various patterns and organic nature of marble, in much the same way as a flower opens its petals to reveal its full beauty. The machine marks the shape by accentuating the different levels of thickness and engraving continuous lines, just like a musical instrument following a musical score.
When Cynthia Sah conducts the “orchestra”, the traces of the engravings made by the machine express the flow of a form that reproduces the terraces sculpted by nature, like a mountain chain slowly excavated between hills and valleys.
Credits
Diapason
Designer: Nicolas Bertoux
Production: Cms
Material: Bianco Carrara
Symmetric
Designer: Raffaello Galiotto
Production: Emmedue
Software: DDX
Surface treatments: Fila Industria Chimica
Material: Azul Macaubas by Essegra International, Avorio Venato AZ
Tools: Nicolai Diamant
Sotto la buccia trovi l’anima
Designer: Sylvestre Gauvrit
Production: Massimo Galleni
Tools: Tyrolit Vincent
Material: Bianco Carrara
Flourish
Designer: Jon Isherwood
Production: Garfagnana Innovazione
Material: Breccia Vagli Violetta, Bardiglio Imperiale Orto di Donna
Wave’s Passage
Designer: Cynthia Sah
Production: Denver
Software: Taglio
Material: Bianco Carrara
