Giuseppe Penone: Matrice

An elegant volume dedicated to one of today’s most admired artists, celebrating the unveiling of his first contemporary permanent installation ever realized in Rome.
One of the most important living sculptors and a legendary figure associated with the revolutionary 1960s Arte Povera movement, Giuseppe Penone has combined radicality and classicism in a personal style that has been admired for half a century. Combining materials such as wood, wax, leather, marble, and bronze, his sculptures reveal a fascination with the transformative forces of nature and themes linked to ecology and environmental conservation.
Documenting Penone’s exhibition in the historic Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana, the new headquarters of FENDI, this beautifully designed monograph serves both as an overview of the artist and a unique document for the extraordinary presentation of Penone’s work in the historic context of the city of Rome.

Giuseppe Penone was the first Italian artist to be granted a solo exhibition in the Royal Palace of Versailles, in 2013. His most recent public art projects have been installed in New York, Kassel, and Frankfurt. Massimiliano Gioni is the artistic director of the New Museum in New York.