Color lithograph , velin paper, 67 x 47 cm light double passe-partout size: 77 x 58 cm, 1972 edition, limited edition of 20/80 l.d., signed and dated by the Artist p.d.
Plessi is one of the most important living Italian artists, considered the father of video art in Italy and one of the first artists to start using television screens as "sculptural material."
Plessi's main idea is the paradoxical combination of nature and technology. While other artists in the 1970s and 1980s saw television as a tool for manipulation, Plessi treated the screen as an "electronic canvas." His most famous works simulate the elements - primarily water and fire - encased in glass CRTs or modern LED panels.
Water is his trademark. Plessi often says: "Water is life, and video is the technology that most resembles water - it is fluid, changeable and elusive." He has created giant installations in which water "overflows" from one screen to another.
Plessi's lithographs often look like Leonardo da Vinci's blueprints transposed into the age of television. Plessi deconstructs Leonardo da Vinci's famous drawing. While the original symbolizes perfect proportions and man as the center of the universe inscribed in geometry, Plessi places him in the element of water.
The year 1972, in which this lithograph was created, is moment "zero" in his career. It was then that Plessi made a definitive break with traditional painting and focused on what became his lifelong obsession: WATER. This is evidence of the birth of Italian conceptualism. At the time, the artist was not yet using video monitors (that came later). He focused on analyzing water as matter, and formulated the thesis that water is a medium. The year 1972 is when Plessi released one of his most important graphic portfolios simply titled "Progetti" (Projects).The present lithograph is from this legendary series. The 1972 works are considered "vintage Plessi." They are much more austere and intellectual than his later, glamorous installations with gold and LED screens. For a collector of conceptual art and video art, 1972 is the "Holy Grail" in his biography.
Today, the 85-year-old Plessi continues to produce spectacular installations, such as the golden waterfalls in St. Mark's Square (L'Età dell'Oro), experiments with the latest technologies, including ultra-high-definition screens and even NFT themes, and regularly participates in major art events. In 2022 and 2024, his works were exhibited in prestigious galleries throughout Italy and abroad.
The framing shown in the visuals is for illustrative purposes only and does not constitute a commercial offer.
