The cycle of exhibitions of contemporary sculpture in the Boboli Gardens continues with the artworks by Tony Cragg, one of the greatest names on the international scene today

Bright steel geysers stand out against the sky of Florence, bronze stalagmites of prehistoric appearance and gigantic resin flowers sprout out of the gravel and between the hedges, colossal and candid stems, hilly eruptions and elliptical shapes, colossal interweaving of imaginary fossil forests, metal flows that shake, twist and fold, caught in the last soft phase before solidify: Tony Cragg's monumental sculptures offer an unexpected dialogue, between associations and dissonances, with the orderly nature of the Boboli Gardens and the panorama of the city, between their layered, fragile and organized historical fabric and the primordial force of the sculptural material.

The exhibition Tony Cragg at Boboli Gardens presents sixteen works by the English master, one of the most famous and acclaimed exponents of contemporary sculpture, scattered in the most evocative places of the garden, to tell the last twenty years of the artist's work, from 1997 to the present day. With their imposing but poetic presence, the sculptures accompany the visitor on a journey of amazement and knowledge, which provides a new interpretative key not only to the sculptures themselves, but also to the space that hosts them. It is as if the unexpected plastic presences that now suddenly appear in the open spaces and meadows of the Boboli Gardens - near the Grotta del Buontalenti, in the Anfiteatro, in front of the Palazzina della Meridiana and so on - suddenly reveal the energy and the irrepressible underground force of these hills, these familiar and comforting views, ordered by architects and gardeners over the centuries. But here, with Cragg's sculptures, Matter joins History, displacing us. The role that Tony Cragg attaches to sculpture is precisely this: starting from an incessant and restless exploration of matter and its relationship with the environment that surrounds us, new meanings, dreams and languages emerge.

"This is the first time that a main Italian museum has dedicated a monographic exhibition to Tony Cragg - comments Eike Schmidt, director of the Uffizi Galleries - and the Boboli Gardens, with their natural wonders, works of ancient art and highly rational structure, are the perfect theatre for this exhibition. In fact, the theme of sculpture in the park, central to the artist's poetics, necessarily includes forms inspired by nature and its mysterious power, created by Cragg to provoke a strong reaction in the observer, whether it be pure emotion or intellectual interpretation”.

Born in Liverpool in 1949, Tony Cragg lives and works in Wuppertal, Germany, since 1977. This is where his studio is located, not far from the Skulpturenpark Waldfrieden, a lively exhibition centre dedicated to contemporary sculpture, created by Cragg in 2008. Active on the art scene since the late 1970s, Cragg has dozens of exhibitions in galleries, museums, parks around the world. He also participates in major contemporary art exhibitions such as documenta or Biennale di Venezia. For a long time, he has combined artistic activity with teaching at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf and the Universität der Künste (UdK) in Berlin. He has received important awards and honours including the prestigious Turner Prize (1988), Shakespeare Prize (2001), and the Praemium Imperiale for Sculpture (2007).

Elliptical Column e Point of View 2012 - 2018 acciaio I Elliptical Column and Point of View 2012 - 2018 stainless steelIndustrial Nature 2015 alluminio I Industrial Nature 2015 aluminiumIndustrial Nature 2015 alluminio I Castor & Pollux 2015 fiberglassWild relatives 2013 bronzo I Wild relatives 2013 bronzeEver After 2006 bronzo I Ever After 2006 bronze I Ever After 2006 bronzeMean Average 2018 fibra di vetro I Mean Average 2018 FiberglassLuke 2008 Bronzo I Luke 2008 bronzeWillow  2014 bronzo I Willow  2014 bronzeCaught Dreaming  2006 bronzo I Caught Dreaming  2006 bronzeVersus  2011 bronzo I Versus  2011 bronzeSenders 2018 fibra di vetro I Senders 2018 fiberglassTommy  2013 bronzo I Tommy  2013 bronze
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Exhibition promoted by

Ministero dei Beni e delle Attività Culturali

Gallerie degli Uffizi

Firenze Musei

Exhibition title

Tony Cragg at Boboli Gardens

Exhibition venue

Giardino di Boboli, Florence

Exhibition to run

5 May - 27 October 2019

Opening hours

Monday – Sunday from 8.15 am to 6.30 pm (May, September, October); from 8.15 am to 7.30 pm (June, July, August); closed first and last Monday of the month

Admission                   

full price € 10.00; concession € 2.00 for EU citizens aged 18 to 25;

Admission free: for children of any nationality under the age of 18, disabled visitors and one carer, journalists members of the Italian journalist order, academic staff and students of architecture, cultural heritage conservation and the educational sciences, or pursuing the archaeology or art history pathway in a degree course in the humanities and philosophy, or a degree or equivalent course in any European Union member country, and for Italian full-time or part-time teachers in state schools or the equivalent.

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Information and reservations: Firenze Musei +39.055.290383

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