Lot 511 D

From as early as 1935, Lucio Fontana begins to explore the material clay and gains his first experience in ceramic workshops. The specific characteristics of clay, soft and easily maleable, allow him to test ideas and to experiment. Consequently, the first cuts (Tagli) in ceramic works develop before the artist transfers them to his painting. The progression of the idea (concetto) in itself is in the focus of Fontana's creative work. Genres and techniques merely play a secondary role. 'Fontana targets the cosmos, the science, the idea, rather than giving painting a new direction or moving the work of art up a step in the ranking of artistic media. He is a prototypical conceptual artist by whom the idea takes precedence over the execution.' (Markus Heinzelmann, Keramische Konzepte, in: Keramische Räume, exhib.cat., Museum Morsbroich, Dortmund 2014, p.23). The present work from 1957 clearly illustrates Lucio Fontana's conceptual approach: as is the case in his paintings, the material is furnished with perforations and cuts in order to break up the habitual two-dimensionality. A sculpture emerges from the flat background, expanding the surrounding space and relinquishing its original function. With his interpretation Fontana contributes to the reappraisal of the ceramic genre and thus becomes a role model for successive artist colleagues such as Norbert Prangenberg, Thomas Schütte, or Rosemarie Trockel.