Casale Marittimo, Tuscany, Italy
The medieval town of Casale Marittimo is inmerse within an ancient wall located on a hill a few miles distant from the sea of the Tuscan coast.
The project approaches to the architectural, historical and landscape context of Casale Marittimo, and it is based on the notion of time and temporality as the essence of the work. An observatory-piece that emerges from the landscape to define a new place through a cyclical dymanic: on one hand Point of view creates the fixation of the moment by facing the perception of the surroundings, and on the other hand, in a parallel time, the cycling transformation of the piece in which the transformation process shapes the physical conception of the work.
Walking by the ancient Roman road that joins Casale Marittimo with Casalevecchio (Etruscan historical site, original foundation of the town) visitors observe on the top of the hill a massive volume formed by rows of straw; Approaching to the piece, the observer discovers how the volume shifts into a perspectival space formed by two walls that invite crossing, offering a new way of perceiving it
Entering in the piece, the perception of the landscape changes: the visitor listens and feels each step walked over the matter. At the end of the piece a step invites to have a higher point of view from which it is possible to observe the medieval town of Casale Marittimo, its connection to the Tyrrhenian Coast and the islands of the Tuscan archipelago: Elba, Capraia and Gorgona.
Interior: A new perception occurred when the step is used as a seat in which the spectator stays in between the straw walls, isolating himself visually from the ample horizon; the glance goes towards a fragment of landscape, framed by the piece. From that point it is possible to perceive the scent of the straw the sound of birds and the wind.
Work process
Since its conception, the project has been closely joint to the surroundings that lodged it. During the development of the project Ivan Juarez, developed a daily connection with the context and its inhabitants, who collaborated actively during the process. The project used a material consisting of dried grass, material used as food for the cattle, the material did not have to be transported from another site but was obtained from a neighboring farm. Using these natural blocks directly from the site creates a level of mimesis with the surroundings.
credits
x-studio | Ivan Juarez
Collaborators: Jochen Holler (sculptor) , Possemato family (farmers)
Art Initiative: Luogo:Comune
Curator: Emanuele Guidi
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With the support of:
Comune di casale Marittimo dala provincia di Pisa, Tra art regione Toscana.
