Naples. A provocative new work by artist Ruben D'Agostino, well-known in Vomero, particularly for his social media posts about the condition of the streets, squares, and gardens in the V Municipality, has arrived.
The work, entitled “Fountain 2024 – tribute to Duchamp”, is based on Marcel Duchamp's famous Fontaine from 1917 and consists of a toilet – yes, a lavatory! – and is placed on a cardboard pedestal, complete with the inscription “R. Mutt 2024” in the centre of the controversial roundabout in Piazza degli Artisti in Vomero.
The photo news was relaunched by the deputy Francesco Emilio Borrelli.
“Ruben D'Agostino, already known for CTRL-Alt-Canc (2013) and Tetris Urbano (2020) as well as for his incessant work of denunciation on social media and on the streets of the V Municipality, will present his new installation:
Fountain 2024 (tribute to Duchamp).
Referring to the famous Fontaine (1917) by Marcel Duchamp, the Neapolitan artist will place the work (a toilet on a cardboard pedestal, complete with the inscription “R. Mutt 2024”) in the centre of the roundabout Artists' Square, a symbol par excellence of the degradation that characterizes not only the administration of the V Municipality and the city, but – mutatis mutandis – of art in Naples.
Fontana 2024 follows the caustic protest carried out by D'Agostino over the last few years: "Vomero is a dump, the art dished out in the city is a dump, this city has become a dump and Piazza degli Artisti is the symbol of moral and administrative decay. What better place to give voice to disappointment?".
Always attentive not only to symbolism but also to material data, D'Agostino underlines and proudly claims the choice of the pedestal: "Cardboard is a material that I adore: sturdy but, if wet, it becomes soft like sand".
Here again, the metaphor is clear: “Those who support this administration are cardboard thugs.”
The work will be visible for free, until the diligent administration removes it. (Maybe…😂)
For those in the know: this is not the abandonment of bulky waste but a provocative work of art, so if you decide to remove it it is because it bothers you or you don't like it, alternatively in a few days I will take it back."
EDITORIAL TEAM
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