Piero Gilardi
Migrazione (Climate Change)

Piero Gilardi (1942 - 2023) was an Italian sculptor and one of the most important representatives of the Italian art movement Arte Povera. Gilardi became known in 1965 primarily for his tappeti natura (nature carpets): carpet-like sculptures made of polyurethane that depict sections of various natural landscapes in an extremely realistic manner. On the one hand, the works show the diversity of natural habitats on this earth, but also the development of an increasingly consumption-orientated lifestyle, which can be harmful to the environment and therefore to these habitats. As one of the pioneers of the environmental movement and always a politically active and critical artist, Gilardi distanced himself from the production of tappeti natura after they became too successful on the art market. He devoted himself for some time to theoretical research into aesthetic forms of expression and was also active in the student and labour movement of 1968. (langer Text, der für die Webseite gekürzt werden kann!)

Over time, Gilardi has developed more and more interactive works and pieces for public spaces and large audiences. The work Migrazione (Climate Change) from 2015 will be shown as part of the Water Light Festival 2024. Similar to the tappeti natura, this work also demonstrates Gilardi's interest and commitment to demonstrating the consequences of climate change. The installation consists of 12 silhouettes of pelicans flying towards a sunset in search of a cooler climate due to rising temperatures. The individual bird silhouettes alternately glow blue, violet and red and follow an algorithm that Gilardi determined together with video maker Heinrich Vogel.