Arte Povera

Giuseppe Penone Tree of Twelve Metres 1980-82

Emerging late 1960s to 1970s Arte Povera, translating to 'poor art,' was a movement associated with having an 'anti-elitist aesthetic' used a mix of both traditional and everyday materials and objects, including many natural materials. The movement has a strong focus on the natural world and the importance of it, emerging as a commentary on how modern art and futurism works which were dominating art at the time had grown ambivalent towards nature as a subject. Due to my interest in unconventional material and the importance of linking nature and human cultures, I was drawn to learn more of the theory behind the Arte Povera movement.

Giuseppe Penone's work expresses his belief that man and nature are one and a fascination with discovering more about nature. Such as when discussing Tree of Twelve Metres, Penone states "what most intrigues me, is the relationship between real time growth and the personal time of 'flaying.' The curiosity of discovering a new tree, and hence a new story, everytime, and the stimulus in this sense that comes to me from the imaginative quality of every door, table, window or board- all of which contain the image of a tree- explain the motivation and urgency of my recourse to this kind of operation, which is not repetition, but a new adventure everytime." (Tate website, Manchester, 2000)