Stanley Whitney's Italian Paintings at Palazzo Tiepolo Passi, Venice

Stanley Whitney's exhibition 'The Italian Paintings' at Palazzo Tiepolo Passi in Venice showcases works spanning three decades, highlighting his evolution in color and space. The artist, born in Philadelphia in 1946, found new impetus during his stay in Rome in the 1990s and later in Parma, where he set up his studio. His practice involves rhythmic bands of color and grid-like divisions derived from drawings, which serve as his experimental field. The exhibition includes three large display cases with sketchbooks and color tests that reveal the structuring of space into geometries reminiscent of Roman architecture. Early works from his Italian period show a powerful resonance with the quick, spontaneous gestures of his drawings, combined with an Italian chromatic sensibility that aligns with Venetian light. Whitney describes his process as following the pictorial process, where color becomes space. The exhibition contrasts early Italian works, some previously unseen, with later pieces featuring calmer structures that allow full chromatic freedom. The show aims to demonstrate that color is material for controlling space, with density, juxtapositions, and edges becoming an arena for mutation.