What it is:
Three 22-foot-tall bronze “lightening bolts”. Each is a bronze 3D-scanned "enlargement" of small twigs! Amazing from a distance (I haven’t seen anyone walk by the gallery who didn’t do a double-take and jump inside) and even more thrilling to walk under these massive day-glow-yellow lightning sculptures.
Why it Matters:
Click the image below to view the secret non-public YouTube video link that features Ugo's last exhibition. Skip to the 6-minute mark to see the section on Ugo Rondinone. It'll also give you a cool quick history leading up to this moment.
But there’s an even bigger secret! Click here for an article on Ocula.com that features photos of Ugo's studio about 18 months ago. By coincidence, it was at an early stage of planning for THIS exhibition, so it shows some full-scale models that he was working on. Wow!!
FYI: His studio is a converted Romanesque church in Harlem, built in the 1800's, with jaw-dropping stained-glass in the front living quarters and a massive studio in back that allows him to test his ideas at full scale. Unfortunately we can't visit, but W magazine did a cool photo-essay, linked below.
Above: Ugo Rondinone’s studio in Harlem. See a cool photo-tour in W Magazine here. Photos by Jason Schmidt for W Magazine.
Below is the 18-month-old photo I was talking about that has the "model" for the current show. See all the photos & the article on Ocula.com here. Though the article doesn't mention it, they happen to show his “mock-ups” of the lightening sculptures, which look like enlarged xerox copies on cardboard so he can test the size? You’ll also find a photo of an original small “twig” in that article link, that I'm assuming is one that was 3D scanned and enlarged.
The above photos is from the article on Ocula.com
All to say:
Go see it
Learn much more about his studio and process in my zoom lectures and VIP tours! Links: VIP tours here and the corporate zoom lectures here.
Ugo Rondinone @ Gladstone Gallery, 530 W 21st St, thru 11/9/23 —>Exhibition Link