Where Are We Going?: Selections from the Francois Pinault Collection

by Jack Bankowsky (Editor), David Anfam (Contributor), Yve-Alain Bois (Contributor)

Advanced art asks questions—about our condition, our culture and the future of the world we live in. To inaugurate the newly renovated Palazzo Grassi in Venice, its new president François Pinault is pleased to present "Where Are We Going?"—an exhibition highlighting a focused selection of his collection's post-war holdings. François Pinault acquired this prestigious institution last year and has commissioned Japanese architect Tadao Ando to renovate the exhibition spaces. He is the founder of PPR, one of Europe's leading retail groups, as well as a principle force in the luxury goods market with such celebrated brands as Gucci, Bottega Veneta and Yves Saint Laurent. Marking the first public unveiling of the François Pinault collection, "Where Are We Going?" reposes a question that is at the heart of his collecting philosophy as well as at the crux of the creative process. The catalogue demonstrates Pinault's singular engagement with some of the most influential and challenging artists of our times. Featuring approximately 200 works in full-color plates by 53 artists, the volume spans such post-war masters as Mark Rothko, Cy Twombly, Piero Manzoni, to mid-career stars such as Jeff Koons, Damien Hirst, Pierre Huyghe, and Maurizio Cattelan, through a younger generation of artists such as Urs Fischer, and Piotr Uklanski.

Genres: Art

272 pages, Hardcover

First published July 11, 2006

Reviews

[Julian]

I picked this up for $20 at Half Price books and this is a great collection book for that price (the list price of $65 isn't too shabby for a book of this quality either). I was immediately drawn to "Where Are We Going?" because of the picture quality (practically every shot looks gorgeous) as well as the large selection of work from the Arte Povera movement (Anselmo, Pistoletto, Penone, Paolini, Fabro, and Merz are all on display - most with around 5 images). It's unfortunate that each artist doesn't have their own essay (there are 21 two-page essays and 48 artists total) this makes the book arrangement seem a little haphazard because the reader will be introduced to an artist only to skim over one or two images of another artist as they move on through the book (to the book's credit - the artists are all arranged visually or conceptually so the transition between them isn't too abrupt). The essays serve only to introduce a small aspect of each artist's practice so if you're already familiar with the work of many of these artists the essays might not be of much use. I found it interesting seeing minimalism and pop art appear right after the Arte Povera artists (since their work was a rejection of materialism, formally and conceptually) - the collection is strong, I think, because all of the works are brilliantly presented and represent certain aspects of each artist's work that make them relevant to the collection overall, the curation is extraordinary (even more so because of the big names and all the different locations they come from).

"Where Are We Going?" is a great introduction to some amazing art from the last 50 years (as well as the overlooked, in America at least, Arte Povera movement) - the work and presentation is top notch. If you don't want to keep seeing work on your computer screen this is a great (and relatively cheap) alternative.

Artists include:
Giovanni Anselmo, Luciano Fabro, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, David Hammons, Damien Hirst, Donald Judd, Paul McCarthy, Mario Merz, Bruce Nauman, Giulio Paolini, Giuseppe Penone, Raymond Pettibon, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Gerhard Richter, Mark Rothko, Richard Serra, Cindy Sherman, Luc Tuymans, Cy Twombly, Jeff Wall, Andy Warhol, Kieth Haring, Jeff Koons, and others.