SCULPTOR
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SIMON BENETTON SCULPTOR |
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IRON
AND THE FORMS OF SIMON BENETTON.
Simon Benetton belongs to the world of sculpture, specifically to the world of iron sculpture. His father is the well known sculptor Tony Benetton who is credited with having given artistic dimension to iron sculpture in our times. This background has given Simon Benetton the advantage of having established early in his life a valuable familiarity with the medium of iron. This hard and primitive metal is not frequently the choice selection of artists. Working in wrought iron requires special training and a special understanding of the medium.
In the progress of his
artistic carreer, Simon Benetton has cultivated his medium. He has continued to research
and to study iron and to refine the techniques as applied to creating the works of art he
designs. He has avoided getting involved in the succession of fashions and trends in
sculpture and in experimenting with new media.
He has remained faithful to his medium and while he has never lost track with his personal vision in sculpture, he has been very innovative and daring in his design.
For Simon Benetton, having concentrated on iron meant that he achieved a full knowledge and understanding of his metal. This gave him the possibility to control and subdue iron to the point where he could produce the works of art to satisfy his standards and to meet the aesthetic demands of our times for significant sculpture.
The symbiotic
relationship of Simon Benetton with his chosen medium is a condition of privilege because
this condition allows him to fully exercise his potential as an artist.
In such a relationship there is no need to compromise. The artist is sure of himself, he knows his technique and he trusts his medium. The resulting works of art become a statement of this bond between the artist and his medium. The hand of the artist has operated the transformation. The hand has worked the metal through all the stages, releasing the noble nature of iron and making it an intrinsic part of the work of art.
The sculpture of Simon
Benetton conforms to the high idealism of pure abstraction. But while observing the
doctrine of abstraction, it also offers various alternatives of style. Simon Benetton
never looses sight of the traditional, classical values of sculpture. The form, the space,
the effects and contrasts of light and shadow are clearly thought out with each piece. His
forms are well designed and vigorously precise. They can be formalistic, rigid structures
frequently reaching upwards with vertical or diagonal lines. They are powerful symbols of
heroic deeds and at the same time they have the aesthetic quality demanded of sculpture.
The forms that appear to be inspired and constructed by the technology of our times have
also an opening towards nature, indicated by some curvilinear parts.
The artist interprets the sentiment
of the times. Simon Benetton produces works that strike a balance between the enormous
technological advances we are experiencing and our wish to preserve our contact with
nature. His sculptures, sometimes precise and sometimes loose and serene, produced with a
primitive and yet singularly refined metal, are in themselves the symbol of the substance
and the evolution of the earth.
Luciana Benzi - Toronto, 1995.
BIOGRAPHY.
Simon Benetton was born in Treviso on the 24th of October, 1933. He still lives and
works in Treviso, directing a study-laboratory. Since his youth, iron has been his whole
world. After attending courses at the Accademy of Fine Arts in Venice, he ventured into
solitary, wide-ranging, individual research. He has past through various periods in his
formation: from the figurative to plastic vibration in space, from the model has symbol of
impulse to spatial dynamics, from iron plates representing human conglomeration to
macroscupltures as elements and expression of the will and conquest of man today.
In his latest works his
sculpting has taken on new dimensions, projecting itself into urban spaces as an
expression of man's liberty and progress. His sculptures are exceptional proof of the
supremacy of man over matter. Many of his works are in private collections and museums;
his works are permanently on display in buildings and urban spaces. In these works the
public is invited to see an image which correspond, in terms of esthetic forms, to today's
concept of space, time, liberty, socialisation and democratic conscience. He is at present
working on projects of several macrosculpture for urban centers in Italy and abroad. The
artist's sculptures have often been shown in films and documentaries on national and
international television networks.
MAIN PRESENCES IN THE ITALIAN MUSEUMS
BOLOGNA; Modern Art Gallery, cardinal Giacomo Lercaro Foundation CATANIA;
Collection of the Culture and Art Institute FERRARA; Modern Art Museum, Palace of
the Diamonds ROME; Modern Art Museum of Fregene, Vatican Museums TURIN;
Modern Art Museum TREVISO; C. Bailo Civic Museum VENICE; Ca'Pesaro Modern
Art Museum VICENZA; Modern and Contemporary Art Museum CARDIFF (Great Britain);
Iron Art Museum FORT LAUDERDALE (Florida, USA) ; Museum of Art of Fort Lauderdale HEREFORD
(Great Britain); Craft Council College Museum LONDON; Victoria and Albert
Museum MEMPHIS (Tennessee, USA) Museum of Iron Art ORLEANS (France); Modern
Art Museum SAN PAOLO (Brazil); University Unicamp Centre, University Contemporary
Art Museum SAN FRANCISCO (California, USA); Modern Art Museum WASHINGTON (USA);
Georgetown University, International Sculpture Center, Museum of the National Arts
Foundation
ESSENTIAL BIBLIOGRAPHY
1974 "Simon Benetton", by C. Munari, Immordino Editore, Genoa.
1976 "Scultura di Simon Benetton", G. Mazzotti, Matteo Editore, Treviso.
1982 "Towards a New Iron Age",edited by the Victoria and Albert Museum,
London.
1983 "Segno, materia, colore, figura", Rebellato Editore, Treviso.
1988 "Icaro in armonia - Ritmi plastici di Simon Benetton", by G. di Nova
e A. Barzaghi, Acelum, Asolo - La Tribuna di Treviso.
1990 "La struttura architettonica delle forme scandita da esatte cadenze
armoniche" by G. Di Genova e T. Paloscia.
1991 "Simon Benetton", Mondadori & Associati, Milan. "Simon
Benetton, La scultura vivibile nella logica di un'evoluzione creativa", N.
Hristodescu, Edizioni del Sole, Naples.
1992 "Simon Benetton. Un conquistatore di spazi", Acelum, Treviso.
"Il giardino dei filosofi di Simon Benetton. Un approccio plastico con l'idea di
Santese" in "Arte in" , Giancarlo Calcagni, Marghera (Venice).
1994 "L'arte contemporanea del secondo dopoguerra", in the Modern Art
Catalogue n. 29, Giorgio Mondadori, Milan.
"Simon Benetton, scultura 1950 - 1994", Catalogue of the Personal Art
Exhibition, Carraresi's House, Cassamarca Foundation, Treviso, Electa, Milan.
1995 "Simon Benetton : il mio Veneto" by Stefano Gambarotto, in
"Veneto Ieri Oggi Domani", Stocchiero Editore, Vicenza.
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To send a message: simon@calion.com
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