Giuseppe Penone's 'Matrice' at Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana

Giuseppe Penone's exhibition 'Matrice' at the Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana in Rome, presented by Gagosian Gallery, explores the artist's engagement with Arte Povera and the relationship between nature and culture. The show features works such as 'Pugno di grafite – palpebra 2' (2012), where a graphite palm print resembles a watchful eye, and 'Equivalenze – 2 luglio 2016', a honeycomb-like composition of terracotta casts evoking Man Ray's 'Le Violon d'Ingres'. 'Equivalenze 2017' presents two bronze sculptures resembling bark tongues that morph into supine, anthropomorphic forms. The installation 'Ripetere il bosco' (1969-2016) transforms the space into a forest of towering trees. The centerpiece, 'Matrice', features a hollowed fir trunk with a bronze mold pressing into its surface, symbolically halting growth. Drawings are placed in a corridor, a less ideal location. The exhibition runs at the Colosseo Quadrato, a rationalist building that dialogues with Penone's natural forms.