Sabrina Vitali exhibition at Galerie Papillon presents works from her LVMH Métiers d’Art residency at Italian luxury metal hardware maker Renato Menegatti
LVMH
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© Julien Lutt
Sabrina Vitali, selected in 2019 as the fourth LVMH Métiers d’Art artist in residence, is exhibiting works created during her residency at Renato Menegatti in Villaverla, in Italy’s Veneto region. The luxury goods metal hardware maker has long worked with LVMH and its Maisons. Sabrina Vitali shows some of her most striking works, which revolve around the theme of metal and the transformation of bodies, at the Galerie Papillon in Paris. The exhibition runs until February 22nd.
The LVMH Métiers d’Art artist in residence program engages the inventive spirit of artisans with the vision of an artist, bringing materials to life thanks to this creative dialogue. French sculptor Sabrina Vitali spent six months with artisans at Renato Menegatti, which manufactures metal hardware for luxury goods in Villaverla, in northern Italy. Through different experiments and approaches during her residency, the artist rethought metal, a material that would at first glance seem cold and lifeless.
“Metal is often used for its strength, as a structural or mechanical element,” says Sabrina Vitali. “I wanted to discover its organic essence, its fragility, flexibility, transparency and depth – its carnal and sensual dimension.” The artist thus brought metal to life, exploring its physical transformations and how a body can evolve and express new sensations.
The fruit of these explorations is presented at Galerie Papillon, in Paris’ 3rd arrondissement, in an exhibition entitled “Fabrica”. The metal in a work entitled Tagasode Industriel is sculpted with amazing finesse and delicacy, like the draping of a Renaissance sculpture. The material seems to be in movement, full of vitality. The aptly named Paravents Telluriques (Telluric Screens) are imposing two-meter by two-meter panels inspired by traditional Japanese folding screens, elevated by the robustness of the metal and revitalized by the visible imperfections.
In conjunction with the exhibition, LVMH Métiers d’Art has published a book on its fourth artist in residence program. The elegant tome retraces the six months of artistic experimentations by Sabrina Vitali at Renato Menegatti, culminating in the sculptures in the exhibition.