Laboratorio Saccardi
02 Dec 2006 - 10 Jan 2007
LABORATORIO SACCARDI
Laboratorio Saccardi, a collective of four young artists from Palermo in Italy, has created a flux of images with a tiny biting humoristic undertone, here and there. Life has become fast and the everyday flood of information drags them along into the world of curser arrows, computer games, porno and of their artist-collegues who are highly ranked in art sale charts. But how should they relate to this contineous change of internet possibilities, politics, and of sex and big business scandals. Who is friend, who is enemy? In their paintings and ojects one detects that society is severely grabbed by its time and that Laboratorio Saccardi can't keep from attempting to put one's affairs in order. It is like swimming against the tide, but nevertheless their work is full of hope and optimism. Many things go wrong, hardly anything is right, everything should be different, but always with a good laugh. In the meantime traces are made in history and there is always a glimmer of hope that Laboratorio Saccardi might be part of it one day.
Laboratorio Saccardi is a group of artists friends who work closely together, even if small paintings of 18 x 24 cm are made, for instance. A film is loosely made out of hand or plucked from internet by bits and pieces. The iPod as sculpture, the Podcast for their free art films, the game computer in their exhibitions or the digital camera for their PR, these are all usable. In a happy manner not only society is critisized, but also they critisize themselves as artists. In this way on a canvas it is said that a file called war-lab.saccardi.mp3 is sent from "USA" to the "Rest of the world" and downloading this takes "40 years to the end of the process".
The paintings and films of Laboratorio Saccardi have a cartoon-like character. The idea and theme are more important than painterly qualities and craftsmanship. The attractiveness of their work is their sharpness of free thinking incorporated in their powerful energy shown by their works. Their ability to put contemporary electronic devices into perspective is remarkable light hearted, and yet to the point. This is food for thought. For example the way art history is integrated or how a primitive computer game 'Ping pong' of 20 years ago is presented as a game of today as if recently launched by Microsoft. Current issues are dealt with when a computer keyboard with Arabic script is painted with coincidental blood stains on a few keys and therefore slightly seem to refer to the actuality of terror attacks.
Laboratorio Saccardi, a collective of four young artists from Palermo in Italy, has created a flux of images with a tiny biting humoristic undertone, here and there. Life has become fast and the everyday flood of information drags them along into the world of curser arrows, computer games, porno and of their artist-collegues who are highly ranked in art sale charts. But how should they relate to this contineous change of internet possibilities, politics, and of sex and big business scandals. Who is friend, who is enemy? In their paintings and ojects one detects that society is severely grabbed by its time and that Laboratorio Saccardi can't keep from attempting to put one's affairs in order. It is like swimming against the tide, but nevertheless their work is full of hope and optimism. Many things go wrong, hardly anything is right, everything should be different, but always with a good laugh. In the meantime traces are made in history and there is always a glimmer of hope that Laboratorio Saccardi might be part of it one day.
Laboratorio Saccardi is a group of artists friends who work closely together, even if small paintings of 18 x 24 cm are made, for instance. A film is loosely made out of hand or plucked from internet by bits and pieces. The iPod as sculpture, the Podcast for their free art films, the game computer in their exhibitions or the digital camera for their PR, these are all usable. In a happy manner not only society is critisized, but also they critisize themselves as artists. In this way on a canvas it is said that a file called war-lab.saccardi.mp3 is sent from "USA" to the "Rest of the world" and downloading this takes "40 years to the end of the process".
The paintings and films of Laboratorio Saccardi have a cartoon-like character. The idea and theme are more important than painterly qualities and craftsmanship. The attractiveness of their work is their sharpness of free thinking incorporated in their powerful energy shown by their works. Their ability to put contemporary electronic devices into perspective is remarkable light hearted, and yet to the point. This is food for thought. For example the way art history is integrated or how a primitive computer game 'Ping pong' of 20 years ago is presented as a game of today as if recently launched by Microsoft. Current issues are dealt with when a computer keyboard with Arabic script is painted with coincidental blood stains on a few keys and therefore slightly seem to refer to the actuality of terror attacks.