The Sprengel Museum in Hannover is
presenting, for the first time in Germany, an
extensive exhibition on the first decade of
Italian Futurism (1909 to 1918). It covers the
period from the first Futurist Manifesto of F.T.
Marinetti to the end of the First World War - a
period in which Futurism was given its
theoretical foundation and its artistic
expression.
In this country there has so far been no
in-depth reflection on this movement so
important for Italian and European art of the
20th century. The reasons for this are
manifold. First and foremost, the Futurists (like
the Russian avant-garde later) saw their work
in a decidedly political context. In the case of
the Futurists this was the unity (and imperial
stature) of Italy. The driving force behind the
movement, F. T. Marinetti, was not alone in
fostering the hope that Futurism might evolve
into the official national school of art, into the
symbol of the 'Italianeitą' and of the
'Irridentismo' and thus play a leading
ideological role in Italy and Europe. Some
years later this aspiration was to bring the
Futurists perilously close to Fascism (Norbert
Nobis). An aberration which made later
generations keep their distance and
stigmatized the artists concerned and Futurism
as a whole for a long time. Other reasons for
the reservations about Futurism are the dogged
battle waged by Futurists against German art
and culture as well as - in return - the
emphatically nationalistic attitude in the
reception of this art movement in Germany.
This notwithstanding, Futurism has many
intellectual and formal points in common both
with French Cubism and German
Expressionism.
However, these interactions are not the only
reason for taking a close new look. Unlike most
contemporary artists in Europe, the Futurists
were keen to welcome and glorify the advance
of technology in around 1900. It is therefore
fitting, now that the 20th technological
century is drawing to a close and being
superseded by the Digital Revolution, that the
art of this epoch should be studied from new
angles. It was at that time that Einstein's
theory of relativity and Planck's quantum
mechanics initiated a radical revolution in
general theories of cognition (Francesca
Talpo), and this soon had its repercussions in
all fields of art. The discoveries that time is a
mental construct and matter cannot be
separated from energy fermented in a cultural
climate which - satiated by Nietzsche's
Promethean Superman, Bergson's rejection
of the intellect as the seat of cognition and
various euphorically vitalistic programmes
for reforming life - cried out for a new approach
trusting in the intuition of the artistic subject.
We want to return to life ... everything is in
motion, everything is in the throes of rapid
change it says in the Technical Manifesto of
1910.
To do justice to this new situation and
sensitize society with an aesthetics aimed at
changing the praxis of life, the Futurists
alloyed social revolutionary, anarchistic and
national-chauvinistic positions with a euphoric
faith in progress (Christoph Hoch) and, on top
of this, created the formal repertoire of the
modern avant-garde: happenings, polemics,
manifestos and aggressive agitation. Unlike
the Dadaists and Surrealists, who reacted to
industrial modernization with scepticism and
anti-bourgeois protest, the Futurists were
concerned to glorify modern life, which the
victorious natural sciences are incessantly and
vigorously transforming. In doing so they
cultivated a claim to totality beyond art, which
mainly manifested itself in outward activities to
aesthetically reflect and elevate social reality.
A process which screams out at us today in all
fields.
Noise from the street. Italian Futurism from
1909 to 1918 will encompass about 300
works from the Fine Arts (paintings, sculptures
and drawings) along with documentation of the
Futurist manifestos and other publications of
artists of this movement. Special prominence
will be given to the founder members of
Futurism - Marinetti, Balla, Boccioni, Carrį,
Russolo and Severini - whilst all other artists
are represented with outstanding examples of
their output.
The Futurist movement was by no means
confined solely to painting and sculpture. This
exhibition will consequently encompass not
only the Fine Arts, but also architecture,
photography and stage design with selected
examples. In an extensive accompanying
programme, all the artistic fields covered by
the Futurists and the versatility of these artists
will be documented with readings of literature,
film shows and musical and theatrical
performances.
A lavishly illustrated exhibition catalogue
containing articles from reputed international
authors on a variety of aspects of Futurism will
be published. To prepare the exhibition we have
created a panel of experts, bringing together -
amongst others - Prof. Dr. Enrico Crispolti from
Rome, Dr. Massimo Carrį from Milan and Prof.
Dr. Ulrich Krempel from Hannover. The curator
of the exhibition is Dr. Norbert Nobis.
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