100 Kounellis drawings on view at Museo Novecento in Florence

The Museo Novecento in Florence presents 'La stanza vede', an exhibition of about 100 drawings by Jannis Kounellis (1936–2017), created between 1973 and 1990. Curated by Dieter Schwarz, the show challenges the perception of Kounellis as solely an Arte Povera artist, emphasizing his self-identification as a painter. The works, selected by Kounellis himself, were first exhibited in the early 1990s at Gemeentemuseum Den Haag under director Rudi Fuchs, then traveled to Amsterdam, England, and Barcelona. The drawings reveal Kounellis's technical skill in ink, pencil, and charcoal, and his engagement with classical art, Italian Renaissance, and theatrical space. Many sheets feature preparatory sketches for installations, with motifs like coats, musical instruments, blackened stones, and jute sacks. Sergio Risaliti, artistic director of the museum, describes the work as 'oracular', focused on presentation rather than representation. The exhibition highlights Kounellis's architectural approach to painting and his training in stage design under Toti Scialoja alongside Pino Pascali. Kounellis's own words, displayed in the show, defend the painter's intellectual freedom, citing Jackson Pollock as a painter who reinvented American space.