LEVEL 3, GALLERY 28
TURKEY, BORN 1981
LIVES AND WORKS ISTANBUL
PROJECT
Working in figurative sculpture, Guido Casaretto uses traditional techniques to challenge and subvert contemporary sculpting tendencies which rely on automation, computer-controlled machinery and digital manipulation. As far as I recall / I–II and As far as I recall / III–IV, created in 2016, comprise four resin busts of a man, each depicting the same subject with slightly different head angles, mounted in a line on the wall for display. The subject, David, was sourced from the digital realm, a character drawn in 3D to purchase for use in digital animation in industries such as cinema, television, gaming or pornography. Treating the David like a ‘real’ subject, Casaretto produced life-drawings, using these as the basis to sculpt the busts in clay before casting them. The shadowing and details of the David’s features and clothing are hand rendered in charcoal on the busts, with the colour palette – black, grey and white – determined by the materials.
Casaretto’s experimentation, with materials (such as concrete, skin, soil, and epoxy), scale and source material, is the spine for his body of works. Bringing to mind computer programs that attempt to simulate reality, his works blur the lines between the original and its copy, real and virtual, inviting viewers to question their sensory perceptions.
ABOUT
Guido Casaretto is one of the founders of Sanatorium Art Initiative, an Istanbul-based gallery showcasing artists against government oppression. His solo shows have included The Ghosts of Matter at MOCAK, Krakow, Poland (2019); The Pope and Galileo Had a Minor Disagreement at Zilberman Gallery, Istanbul, Turkey (2017); Synesthesia at Zilberman Gallery, Istanbul, Turkey (2015); Extrasystemic Correlations at Zilberman Gallery, Istanbul, Turkey (2012); and Default at Sanatorium, Istanbul, Turkey (2011). Casaretto has been featured in group shows including Restless Monuments at Zilberman Gallery, Istanbul, Turkey (2018); Urban Justice at CerModern, Ankara, Turkey (2015); the Venice Biennial Italian Pavilion (2011); and Teatro Comunale (Italy, 2000). Casaretto’s work is included in MOCAK– Museum of Contemporary Art Kraków and many important private collections in Europe and the Middle East.
The NGV warmly thanks Triennial Supporters Sarah Morgan and Andrew Cook for their support