A. Gormley, “Making Space Taking Place” – Arte all’Arte, 2004
Various places
Poggibonsi
Antony Gormley is famous for his site-specific art pieces. When he was asked in 2004 to realize sculptural works for Poggibonsi (inside the Arte all’Arte edition) Gormley produced Making Place Taking Place: the project has a deep social link with Poggibonsi’s inhabitants. Its aim is to embrace the city memory from the past to nowadays. Something particular about Poggibonsi is its double nature of “crossroad” and place of “continous construction and reconstruction” since medieval times, including the post II World War bombing period.
Seven pixellated iron sculpures were created on the model of Poggibonsi’s citizens and of one traveller, and then installed in seven different points of the city, known places of the present and forgot ones from the past; a unique sociologic research to create a “psycho-geographical map” (a map of the common memories) of Poggibonsi has been lauched, which origin was in questions to inhabitants like “What do you thing about Poggibonsi?”, “How the city changed through years?”, “Which places do you relate with positive outcomes and negative ones?”. On their answers the installations’ places were decided.
