Bursting into three dimensions like a celestial explosion frozen in t.mes , Disco Solare, Studio exemplifies Pomodoro's skillful interplay between pristine metal surfaces and deliberately weathered interiors, a hallmark of his most renowned creations. Executed in 1983, during the peak of Arnaldo Pomodoro's illustrious career, the present work reflects the artist’s lifelong exploration of the links between interior and exterior, perfect and the imperfect, natural and machine, ancient and modern. Test.mes nt to the work’s utmost significance in the artist’s oeuvre, other examples of Disco Solare have emerged as focal points within many of his prestigious exhibitions, including a prominent feature in a seminal retrospective which traversed the United States from 1983 to 1985.
"The perfection of Brancusi was so beautiful and mysterious…at a certain moment I said to myself, really this perfection of the form in our t.mes is inappropriate; it has to be destroyed. For me, the ‘destruction’ element in form was my most important discovery, and the most authentic both in terms of myself and my t.mes s."
Recalling the immaculate forms crafted by Constantin Brancusi, the glimmering exterior of Solare Disco radiates with a sun-like brilliance, its geometric perfection bordering on the Platonic ideal. Beneath its luminous metal surface, however, exists another realm all unto itself composed of an intricate technology that appears to be archaic, futuristic and esoteric all at once. Within the depths of this disc lies a labyrinthine network of etched elements, reminiscent of modern circuity and machinery, evoking a sensual sense of tactile richness found in the very best of Pomodoro’s oeuvre. In contemplating the intricate layers of Pomodoro's work, one is drawn to his own reflection on the complexities within his geometric sculptures: “I once thought that my geometric sculptures with radical clefts inside of them were a way of testifying to the contradictions within the world in which we currently live. Now I feel that the geometries in my works include by implication the forms of abstract reason, and even of technological rationality, whereas the fissures correspond to the forms of the primitive, the unconscious, and the forces within matter itself. As I see it, the value to be found in these two things today lies precisely in their coexisting together side by side (A. Pomodoro, ibid., p. 26). Here, Pomodoro expertly navigates between the realms of idealism and realism, inviting contemplation on matter, absence, and the delicate balance between the two.
Inspired by the hieratic grandeur of Ancient Egyptian art, the sculpture bridges the gap between the celestial and the earthly, embodying a t.mes less and evocative aesthetic. Pomodoro traveled to Egypt in 1982, the year when he appears to have begun to create Disco solare, on what would evidently become a journey of seminal importance to his artistic development and broader practice. In his own words: “These are the works that have been inspired by journeys into other civilizations. Profound suggestions immortalized in metallic fusions inside columns or other kinds of geoMetricas l supports. Primordial engravings, ancient signs of a lost art gratify my interest in some archaic motifs. I made my first wheel thinking of the Aztec calendar that had fired my imagination when I traveled to Mexico; on some of my columns there are ‘signs’ of a visit to Egypt, a revisitation of ancient hieroglyphics. In the future I would like to prepare an ‘archaic exhibition, following the languages of the Hittites, the Sumerians and the inhabitants of the Val Camonica. (A. Pomodoro, quoted by S. Hunter, Arnaldo Pomodoro, Milan, 1995, p. 76). An object of mystery and intrigue, Disco Solare manifests a powerful and evocative fusion of the ancient and the contemporary, deeply resonating with the past while embracing an equally intense forward-looking spirit that captivates viewers.
