Emilio Prini's 'Standard' and the Poetics of Space at Ordet

Emilio Prini (Stresa, 1943 – Rome, 2016) is the subject of a solo exhibition at Ordet gallery in Milan, curated from the artist's estate. The show explores Prini's elusive practice, which emerged from the Arte Povera context and centers on the concept of the 'standard'—a mutable module that adapts to its container space. Prini first realized his 'standard' in 1967 with a six-and-a-half-meter aluminum bar installed at Galleria La Bertesca in Milan. The exhibition features typewriter-font texts influenced by Visual Poetry, technical drawings of tables and floor plans, and physical thresholds made of chipboard and lacquered Formica. These works engage with notions of void, presence, and the relationship between signifier and signified. Prini's practice is described as 'metaconceptual,' constantly revising titles, forms, and linguistic codes. The show runs through 2023 at Ordet's post-industrial space.