In the Futurist Manifesto’s prologue, F.T. Marinetti details a trance-like sequence in which, fueled by his unquenchable lust for velocity, he speeds with increasing intensity, ultimately crashing his car upside-down in a ditch. From this ecstatic experience, the Futurist movement was born. Twentieth- century ideologies and the destructive historical events that unfolded can be read metaphorically as the violent outcome of Marinetti’s crash. On the 100th anniversary of the Futurist Manifesto’s publication, Luca Buvoli captures the moment prior to Marinetti’s collision. Through his work, Buvoli arrests the violent turn of events, allowing for an alternative fate — in this Instant Before Incident, any future becomes possible.
Gallery II will feature Buvoli’s Excerpts from: Velocity Zero, where individuals with aphasia read portions of the Futurist Manifesto aloud, as animated images mimic the Futurists’ representation of motion. This work, which critiques the text by slowing and fragmenting its aggressive rhetoric, will also be on view at the Agnes Gund Garden Lobby of the Museum of Modern Art 20 February, from 11 AM to 3 PM.
Luca Buvoli received wide critical acclaim for his multi-media installation at the 2007 Venice Biennale Arsenale entrance. He has had solo exhibitions at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Santa Monica Museum of Art, the Weatherspoon Art Museum, the M.I.T. List Visual Arts Center, and the ICA in Philadelphia among others. His videos have been screened at several institutions, including MoMA, The Lincoln Center, P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Center, and the British Library in London. Additional achievements include grants from the Creative Capital Foundation, New York State Council on the Arts, the Pollock-Krasner Foundation, and a public art commission in New York. Recently, Buvoli has participated in group exhibitions at the Mattress Factory and the Museum Folkwang in Germany. Adept in many media, Buvoli’s work encompasses animated film and video, installation, sculpture, painting, and drawing.