Giammarco cuGusiPORTFOLIO - sELECTED PROJECTs

Have you seen the

italian electionresults?Well,itis

clearthatnoone has seen my

work!

A sad italian young artist.

sTATEmEnT uPDATED TO mARCH 5, 2018

A sTORY OF COInCIDEnCEsThe journey

August 8, 1991:The cargo ship Vlora arrived in Bari(IT) bring-ing with it about 20.000 albanian migrants.

August 9, 1991:I was born in Bergamo(IT).

20.000 people were “italian” a day before me, but they couldn’t have my same rights.

The journey is the first chapter of a story devel-oped as installation-novel, where the narration it-self is followed by an installation. Thomas is its main character, and his story is made of a series of coincidences, constructed or founded in history. To write it down, I made use of a technique close to the collage, putting together, overlapping, in-terpreting and developing further, the coincidences and related events I found during my research, giv-ing birth to a new fictional narration. The installation contains elements directly con-nected to the story I created and others instead tied to the macro-thematic of migration where the story itself can be situated.Fundamental for the audience in connecting the dif-ferent scenes of the story, is my physical presence as narrator. In my absence, an audio-guide will led the spectator.

A sTORY OF COInCIDEnCEs

Vlora-Volar

Vlora is the name of the cargo ship arrived in Bari (IT) the 8th of august 1991 with almost 20.000 per-sons on board.Vlora is the anagram of Volar (to fly).The 9th of august 1991 the singer Domenico modugno, famous all over the world for his song Nel blu dip-into di blu (Volare),comes back on stage after 7 years.

mobile object110x60x330 cm

2017

sTORYTELLInG

Thomas is trying to escape his country embarking on a ship. A child, probably 6 or 7 years old, is close to him. He has no education. Trying to read the name of the ship, Vlora, after few tries, the child inverts the letters and shouts: Volar!Suddenly, all the others exhausted persons start to sing: Volare, oh oh, cantare, oh oh oh, nel blu dipinto di blu...The day after, the singer Domenico Modugno would have made his come back on stage after an absence of seven long years.

A sTORY OF COInCIDEnCEs

Volere-Volare #1

usable objectsVariable dimensions

2017

A sTORY OF COInCIDEnCEs

Volere-Volare #2

The head of a crib for children is enlarged becoming a real barrier. If on one hand there are those who are lulled by the lullaby and they fell asleep sweetly, on the other side there are those who would like to enjoy this privilege but are instead opposed and left out.

Installation230x120 cm

2018

A sTORY OF COInCIDEnCEs

Instructions to fly

I put a stone on the seabed, in the southern edge of the isle of san Pietro (IT), bearing as an inscrip-tion on a plate a set of instructions to fly:step on the stone - Open your arms - move your arms slowly - move your arms quickly - Jump.Underwater these instructions can be fulfill, you can fly.

Picture on screenVariable dimensions2016

A sTORY OF COInCIDEnCEs

Machine to decelarate the earth’s rotation

One of the main features of globalization is the compression of time and space.The purpose of this machine is to decelarate the earth’s rotation and consequently to slow down the time. If the earth turns from west to east, the rope should be pull in the opposite direction.

maquette, 1:10 150x60x90 cm

2017

A sTORY OF COInCIDEnCEs

Per punizione,un giro di campo!

Once in Bari, the migrants were conducted and de-tained in the former stadium of the football team A.s. Bari, Stadio della Vittoria.Given the bad results of the football team A.s. Bari, in season 1949-1950, the supporters altered the name of the stadium from Stadio della Vittoria (stadium of the Victory) to Stadio della Sconfitta (stadium of the Defeat).

I have taken a lap of the Stadio della Vittoria and filmed the action using a POV shot.To take a lap of the field, was the usual penalty for committing a mistake, when as younger I used to play football.

Video00:05:242017

A sTORY OF COInCIDEnCEs

Paolo Giammarco

Paolo Giammarco was one of the football player of A.s. Bari during the season 1949-1950 when the sup-porters nicknamed the Stadium of the Victory, Sta-dium of the defeat.Giammarco is my first name.

Hand-colored T-shirt80x50 cm

2017

sTORYTELLInG

Paolo Giammarco was the idol of Thomas’ father.During all his travel and also in the stadium Thomas wears Giammarco’s handmade uniform.The 9th August 1991, Thomas escaped from the stadium. Thomas, Giammarco, was free.

OTHER PROJECTS...

Sa Razia (or Sa gRaTia)

Sa Razia or Sa Gratia(The Grace) is an ancient wedding tra-dition of sardinia, which refers to the smashing of a kitchen plate at the bride’s feet when she is about to go out from her house. The plate always contains wheat, salt and various sweets, as well as rice and flower petals. The tradition is restricted only to women; indeed, the mother of the bride should always be the first to start with the tradition followed by the moth-er-in-law, but only in the event that the groom’s family is present at the bride’s house. Even if this pagan and propitiatory ritual is meant as a wish for prosperity and wealth, the tradition says that if the plate does not break up at the first attempt, this is a signal for an inauspicious omen. However, in that particular case, the plate needs to be thrown until it breaks down. The blessing is addressed to a daughter which is leaving her home place to start a new life with her beloved men and such a tradition represents a fundamental element of the sardin-ian cultural heritage. This custom is not only a wish for the newborn couple but also it underlines the importance of the journey to the adulthood and independence through the abandonment of the birthplace.

nowadays, the Italian young generation often ends up living with the parents in their childhood house or it is obliged to move abroad due to the scarcity of job opportunities that affected country in recent years. For this reason, I feel the necessity to re-activate this tradition, which represents the sym-bol of the region my dad comes from, to underline the importance of this step from a safe and quiet life, where school has always been the key, to a more adult and independent life.

Performancemain entrance of KAsK & konservatorium Graduation show, Gent02/07/2017

aTTEmPT TO ERaSE my SHadOw

To the artist, the shadow is the most tangible proof of his existence, a witness of his presence as sub-stance, as physical body. shadow means occlusion, occlusion means presence. Infact, the artist does not only want to erase his presence in relation to light -synthesizing in the rubber bits an hybrid be-tween image and essence, but, he is also delivering a blow in the metaphysical relation between relation and appearance, where abolishing one, one ends up abolishing the other.“The true world we have abolished. What world has remained? The apparent one perhaps? But no! With the true world we have also abolished the apparent one.”In our everyday life we have an hard time defining our vital space, in a perpetual escape from our birthplace, leaving family and affections, a life in which we often find ourselves asking “who am I? where am I?” a reflexion on our identity, our being, is necessary. The artists challenges his own “being” and its meaning through a personal and painful eras-ing effort of what is most intangible and ephemeral (but still, witness of existence) exists of him, the shadow.

PerformanceVariable duration Fondazione Bevilacqua La masa, Venice2016

PROgETTO albRigOni, CuO-RE-albERO, CuORE-ViTEllO, CuORE-TEla, maSCHERa, FRanTumaRE, SbRiCiOlaRE, PRO-gETTO ValSECCHi, bianzana, CiTTà alTa, zOPFi, RaniCa, guidO guidi, mOdEl-la 2008-2009, mOdElla 2009-2010, mOd-Ella 2010-2011, mOdElla, PROgETTO mOR-Ri, STaziOnE, bEnzinaiO, VEnEzia, SEa landSCaPE, maRiO aiRò, lab. aRTE 1, lab. FOTOgRaFia, iTalCEmEnTi, ElabORa-TO TESina, Ragazzi di SCamPia, 150 anni uniTà d’iTalia, CuORE, laS bERgamO.

The Hard Disk memory is a secondary mass capable of storing thousands of data. This memory consists of a hard drive, physically breakable, causing data loss. Actually the files are still present, but no longer visible through the computer. The breakup of my hard drive has caused the loss of many projects and as many personal folders; now it remains only a black box containing incorrect information dis-played. The only source capable of communicating with the outside world is the noise caused by electromechan-ical Hard disk jammed.The work thus becomes a container of other works, a “matryoshka” that carries within it a number of small identities.The song caused by the Hard disk and his physical presence are more than just formal gimmicks.The Hard disk memory becomes abstractions of my pre-vious work, physically lost. The song becomes life-line, spokesman hopes. Folders lost up the title of the work.

Interactive Installation, Variable dimensions1st prize Collettiva Giovani Artistisan marco Gallery, Fondazione Bevilacqua La masa, Venice2013

iRRigaRE: COlTiVaRE un PROCESSO

Two sprinklers placed in the exhibition space of Palazzetto Tito (Venice) allow me to continue the process started within the walls of the abandoned building in the Giudecca island, where I installed 50 m2 of real grass. The sprinklers are not operat-ed by water, but by compressed air which, however, recreates the same conditions, about the movement and the sound. The exhibition hall allows me to sum-marize the process without losing the power of the act, indeed even giving it different readings. Pic-tures of the first intervention were visible in the catalogue of the exhibition.

Installation, Variable dimensions Palazzetto Tito, Fondazione Bevilacqua La masa, Venice

2015

unTiTlEd

The project has found its ideal collocation inside an abandoned building in the Giudecca Island, in Ven-ice. The artwork implies the insertion of a grassy blanket (50mq ca.) that is added to the preexistent natural part which has grown spontaneously.

Site-specific installation50 mq of grass

2014

giammaRCO CuguSi

EduCaTiOn

2017

master degree in Fine Arts at KAsK school of art, Gent

2014

Bachelor degree in Visual & Performing Arts at IuAV, Venice

PROFESSiOnal EXPERiEnCES

2016

- Assistant of Arcangelo sassolino, Vicenza

2015

- Founder of the art magazine XRivista, Paris- Assistant of Alvaro urbano, Berlin- Internship at CHERTLuDDE art gallery, Berlin- Founder of the artist collective AAA, Venice

2014

- Assistant of Petrit Halilaj, Kosovo Pavilion, 55. Venice Biennale, Venice

Bergamo, 09/08/1991

Rue de l’Autonomie, 241070, Anderlecht, Bruxelles

+32 0486476435 (BE)+39 3452672910 (IT)

giammarco.cugusi@gmail.com

september 2018

X=Danisinni Group exhibition, manifesta 12, Palermo

2017

27metricubiCollettivo AAA, Long Lake Festival, LuganoGraduation ShowKAsK & Konservatoiurm, Gent27metricubiCollettivo AAA with Central Saint Martins, LondonPage Space Fold PageGroup exhibition, mAP, GentDopo SoleGroup exhibition, studi Festival, milan

2016

100ma Collettiva Giovani ArtistiGroup exhibition by stefano Coletto, Bevilacqua La masa Foundation, Piazza san marco Gallery, VeniceIn-Salum Artist residency and Group exhibition by simona Andrioletti and Alessandro mazzatorta, museo Civi-co del Duca, CarloforteAlienGroup exhibition, In de Ruimte, GentDit betekent dat zelfs de bewandertste Kijker crashen op halverwege van zijn TourGroup exhibition by stefaan Dheedene and Henk Visch, Zwarte Zaal, GentDies hat zur Folge, dass selbst der bewandertste Betrachter auf halbem Wege seinen rundgang ab-brichtGroup exhibition by stefaan Dheedene, Kunstakade-mie, munster

2015

Allora!Group exhibition, Fabbrica saccardo, Vicenza27metricubiCollettivo AAA, mediterranea 17, Young Artists Bi-ennale, Fabbrica del vapore, milano27metricubiCollettivo AAA, in collaboration with università di Padova, Padua27metricubiCollettivo AAA, in collaboration with municipality of Venice, Venicei borsisti della 97ma collettivaGroup exhibition by stefano Coletto, Bevilacqua La masa Foundation, Palazzetto Tito, Venice

2014

98ma Collettiva Giovani ArtistiGroup exhibition by stefano Coletto, Bevilacqua La masa Foundation, Piazza san marco Gallery, Veniceuntitled (from Venezia to Castellana)solo exhibition by sveva Bizzotto, speleological museum “Franco Anelli”, Castellana Grotte, BariDi PASSAGGIoGroup exhibition, A+A Gallery, VeniceA matter of Memory Group exhibition by Liliana moro and sara Berton, spazio Punch, Venice

2013

97ma Collettiva Giovani Artisti (1st prize)Group exhibition curated by stefano Coletto, Bev-ilacqua La masa Foundation, Venice

EXHibiTiOnS