Bill Viola's First Major Institutional Exhibition in Milan at Palazzo Reale

Bill Viola (New York, 1951) receives his first institutional exhibition in Milan at Palazzo Reale, featuring fifteen video installations. The show demands extended viewing time as each work unfolds over minutes. Viola's deep engagement with Renaissance art, particularly Tuscan painting, is evident: 'The Greetings' (1995) reinterprets Pontormo's 'Visitation' in extreme slow motion, stretching 45 seconds into ten minutes. 'Four Hands' (2001) echoes Vito Acconci's research. Color and sound are pivotal; Viola collaborated with sound engineer Bob Biliecki since 1975. Works like 'Emergence' (2002) and 'Fire Woman' (2005) explore themes of spirituality, suffering, and elemental forces. 'Four Martyrs' (2014), first shown at St. Paul's Cathedral in London, represents earth, air, fire, and water. The exhibition emphasizes water as a recurring motif and the spiritual investigation of existence.