Arcangelo Sassolino's 'La condizione del desiderio' at Villa Panza

Arcangelo Sassolino's monumental installation 'La condizione del desiderio' is on view at Villa Panza in Varese until March 9, 2025. The work, originally conceived in 2009 for Z33 in Hasselt, Belgium, has been reconfigured for the Scuderia Grande. It features a steel beam structure with a pneumatic system that slowly moves a long mechanical arm, at whose ends two slabs of white Carnia marble oscillate in precarious balance. The piece explores desire as a perpetual, unresolved tension, transforming the heaviness of marble into illusory lightness. Curated by Angela Vettese and promoted by FAI, the project continues Giuseppe Panza di Biumo's legacy of investigating invisible forces, matter, art, and science. Gabriella Belli, curator of Villa Panza's exhibition activities, notes that the site-specific project invites dialogue with the permanent collection. Sassolino states he can no longer conceive sculpture as fixed form, needing matter to transform while being observed. The work emphasizes the condition of desiring rather than fulfilled desire, with Vettese describing the waiting as heavy and spasmodic.