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“AS ABOVE SO BELOW”
A UNIQUE COMMISSION FOR THE FONDAZIONE LUIGI ROVATI, MILAN
2021
CARVED PINE WOOD, CAPUT MORTUUM BURNISHED GESSO,
PINK INFUSED MERCURY GLASS.
HEIGHT 260CM, WIDTH 145CM, DEPTH 15CM

–

ITS NAME TAKEN FROM AN ALCHEMICAL BOOK OF THE 16TH CENTURY, THE MIRROR DEPICTS THE MATERIAL WORLD (BELOW) AS ROCKS AND GROTTOS REACHING UP INTO THE SPIRITUAL WORLD (ABOVE). THE LEAVES AND REFLECTED LIGHT INDICATE SPIRITUAL TRANSFORMATION.

THE CARVED WOODEN FRAME IS PAINTED WITH GESSO, A SOLUTION OF WHITE CHALK AND ANIMAL GLUE, TO PROVIDE A GROUND FOR THE FINAL LAYER OF COLOURED PIGMENT.

THIS FINAL FINISH IS COMPOSED OF SEVERAL LAYERS OF A PURPLE-BROWN KNOWN AS ‘CAPUT MORTUUM’, A MIXTURE OF NATURAL IRON OXIDES, THE NAME DERIVED FROM ITS USE BY ALCHEMISTS, ITS SYMBOL BEING A STYLIZED DEATH HEAD REPRESENTING DEATH AND DECAY.

THE FRAME IS THEN BURNISHED WITH AN AGATE BURNISHER TO CREATE A SMOOTH AND HIGHLY REFLECTIVE SURFACE ENHANCING THE C ARVING. THE BURNISHED CAPUT MORTUUM PIGMENT IS GIVEN VITALITY BY THE PINK INFUSED GLASS, COMPOSED OF THIRTY-EIGHT INDIVIDUAL PIECES.

THE MIRROR ECHOES THE CYCLES OF NATURE, THE CARVED BRANCHES AND LEAVES
EMERGING FROM ROCKS AND GROTTOS INTO LIGHT, REFLECTION…AND INFINITY.

A MARRIAGE BETWEEN ARTIST AND CRAFTSMAN

–

“AS ABOVE SO BELOW” IS THE CULMINATION OF A SERIES OF FOUR LARGE MIRRORS MARIANNA KENNEDY CREATED IN THE LAST TEN YEARS. THE CHALLENGE ON THIS MIRROR, DESIGNED FOR THE FONDAZIONE LUIGI ROVATI, IS THE EXTRAORDINARY SIZE, ALMOST DOUBLE COMPARED TO THE SERIES OF THE FOUR. THE CONCEPTION, THE PROJECT AND THE REALIZATION OF THIS WORK REPRESENT A MILE STONE IN THE ARTIST CARRIER, AND THE CONCLUSION OF THE SERIES.

FROM THE ORIGINAL DRAWING A LIFE SIZE CANVAS HAS BEEN PAINTED AND INSTALLED IN THE MUSEUM, WHEN ALL THE DECORATIONS OF THE PIANO NOBILE HAD BEEN REMOVED FOR RESTAURATION IN 2018, IN ORDER TO VERIFY ITS SIZE AND DESIGN IN THE DEDICATED LOCATION, AND FROM THAT MOMENT, THE EXTRAORDINARY PROCESS STARTED.

MARIANNA KENNEDY HAS ALWAYS WORKED WITH ONLY TWO BRITISH CARVERS: THE RELATION BETWEEN THE ARTIST AND THE CRAFTSMAN IS ROUTED IN THE DEEPEST UNDERSTANDING OF THE IDEA, THE DESIGN, ITS LANGUAGE; ONLY AN ENDLESS DIALOGUE BETWEEN THE ARTIST AND THE CRAFTSMAN CAN TRANSFORM THE IDEA EXPRESSED IN A BI-DIMENSIONAL DRAWING IN AN INCREDIBLY LIVELY THREE-DIMENSIONAL OBJECT.

THE CARVER HUGH WEDDERBURN AND THE GUILDER ISSY TENNANT ARE AN EXTENSION OF THE ARTIST’S MIND AND HANDS, THEY LEARNED HOW TO INFUSE THE WORK WITH LIFE, IN A MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING WHICH HAS TAKEN YEARS OF PRACTICE TO ACHIEVE.

THE CARVING PROCESS HAS BEEN CONSTANTLY OVERSEEN BY THE ARTIST, AS WELL AS THE FINAL BURNISHING OF THE PATINA, IN ORDER TO CONTROL THE SCULPTURAL EFFECT AND ITS REFLECTION OF THE LIGHT OF EVERY SINGLE PART OF THE WORK.

THE OVERALL STRUCTURAL CONSTRUCTION OF THE MIRROR HAS BEEN MASTERFULLY HANDLED BY THE JOINER SIMON KIDD, WHO EXECUTED MARIANNA’S WISH THAT THE CONSTRUCTION BE BASED ON XVIII CENTURY ENGLISH MIRROR CONSTRUCION.

THE MIRROR PLATE GLASS, WITH ITS CUSTOM ROSE COLORATION, IS AN EVOLUTION OF A TRADITIONAL MERCURY GLASS MIRROR, CREATED BY A GLASS MASTER RESTORER, WHO HAS WORKED ON THE MOST IMPORTANT HISTORIC EUROPEAN MIRRORED ROOMS OF THE XVIII CENTURY. THIRTY-EIGHT INDIVIDUALLY SHAPED GLASS MIRRORS WERE CREATED TO GIVE THE ILLUSION OF ONE LARGE MIRROR PLATE, AND THEY HAVE BEEN INSERTED IN THE BACK-STRUCTURE, IN PAIRING INLAID SHAPES BEFORE ALL THE CARVED SECTIONS HAVE BEEN JOINED TOGETHER.

THE WORK HAS BEEN INSTALLED UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF FABIANO PANZIRONI OF
APICE MILAN, AFTER BEEN CAREFULLY ASSEMBLED BY ALL THE ARTIST’S COLLABORATORS
IN THE ARMS ROOM, RESPECTING THE FRAGILITY OF THE ORIGINAL MARBLE FIREPLACE AND THE PERIOD BOISERIE.

FONDAZIONELUIGIROVATI.ORG

FONDAZIONE LUIGI ROVATI

“AS ABOVE SO BELOW”
A UNIQUE COMMISSION FOR THE FONDAZIONE LUIGI ROVATI, MILAN
2021
CARVED PINE WOOD, CAPUT MORTUUM BURNISHED GESSO,
PINK INFUSED MERCURY GLASS.
HEIGHT 260CM, WIDTH 145CM, DEPTH 15CM

–

ITS NAME TAKEN FROM AN ALCHEMICAL BOOK OF THE 16TH CENTURY, THE MIRROR DEPICTS THE MATERIAL WORLD (BELOW) AS ROCKS AND GROTTOS REACHING UP INTO THE SPIRITUAL WORLD (ABOVE). THE LEAVES AND REFLECTED LIGHT INDICATE SPIRITUAL TRANSFORMATION.

THE CARVED WOODEN FRAME IS PAINTED WITH GESSO, A SOLUTION OF WHITE CHALK AND ANIMAL GLUE, TO PROVIDE A GROUND FOR THE FINAL LAYER OF COLOURED PIGMENT.

THIS FINAL FINISH IS COMPOSED OF SEVERAL LAYERS OF A PURPLE-BROWN KNOWN AS ‘CAPUT MORTUUM’, A MIXTURE OF NATURAL IRON OXIDES, THE NAME DERIVED FROM ITS USE BY ALCHEMISTS, ITS SYMBOL BEING A STYLIZED DEATH HEAD REPRESENTING DEATH AND DECAY.

THE FRAME IS THEN BURNISHED WITH AN AGATE BURNISHER TO CREATE A SMOOTH AND HIGHLY REFLECTIVE SURFACE ENHANCING THE C ARVING. THE BURNISHED CAPUT MORTUUM PIGMENT IS GIVEN VITALITY BY THE PINK INFUSED GLASS, COMPOSED OF THIRTY-EIGHT INDIVIDUAL PIECES.

THE MIRROR ECHOES THE CYCLES OF NATURE, THE CARVED BRANCHES AND LEAVES
EMERGING FROM ROCKS AND GROTTOS INTO LIGHT, REFLECTION…AND INFINITY.

A MARRIAGE BETWEEN ARTIST AND CRAFTSMAN

–

“AS ABOVE SO BELOW” IS THE CULMINATION OF A SERIES OF FOUR LARGE MIRRORS MARIANNA KENNEDY CREATED IN THE LAST TEN YEARS. THE CHALLENGE ON THIS MIRROR, DESIGNED FOR THE FONDAZIONE LUIGI ROVATI, IS THE EXTRAORDINARY SIZE, ALMOST DOUBLE COMPARED TO THE SERIES OF THE FOUR. THE CONCEPTION, THE PROJECT AND THE REALIZATION OF THIS WORK REPRESENT A MILE STONE IN THE ARTIST CARRIER, AND THE CONCLUSION OF THE SERIES.

FROM THE ORIGINAL DRAWING A LIFE SIZE CANVAS HAS BEEN PAINTED AND INSTALLED IN THE MUSEUM, WHEN ALL THE DECORATIONS OF THE PIANO NOBILE HAD BEEN REMOVED FOR RESTAURATION IN 2018, IN ORDER TO VERIFY ITS SIZE AND DESIGN IN THE DEDICATED LOCATION, AND FROM THAT MOMENT, THE EXTRAORDINARY PROCESS STARTED.

MARIANNA KENNEDY HAS ALWAYS WORKED WITH ONLY TWO BRITISH CARVERS: THE RELATION BETWEEN THE ARTIST AND THE CRAFTSMAN IS ROUTED IN THE DEEPEST UNDERSTANDING OF THE IDEA, THE DESIGN, ITS LANGUAGE; ONLY AN ENDLESS DIALOGUE BETWEEN THE ARTIST AND THE CRAFTSMAN CAN TRANSFORM THE IDEA EXPRESSED IN A BI-DIMENSIONAL DRAWING IN AN INCREDIBLY LIVELY THREE-DIMENSIONAL OBJECT.

THE CARVER HUGH WEDDERBURN AND THE GUILDER ISSY TENNANT ARE AN EXTENSION OF THE ARTIST’S MIND AND HANDS, THEY LEARNED HOW TO INFUSE THE WORK WITH LIFE, IN A MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING WHICH HAS TAKEN YEARS OF PRACTICE TO ACHIEVE.

THE CARVING PROCESS HAS BEEN CONSTANTLY OVERSEEN BY THE ARTIST, AS WELL AS THE FINAL BURNISHING OF THE PATINA, IN ORDER TO CONTROL THE SCULPTURAL EFFECT AND ITS REFLECTION OF THE LIGHT OF EVERY SINGLE PART OF THE WORK.

THE OVERALL STRUCTURAL CONSTRUCTION OF THE MIRROR HAS BEEN MASTERFULLY HANDLED BY THE JOINER SIMON KIDD, WHO EXECUTED MARIANNA’S WISH THAT THE CONSTRUCTION BE BASED ON XVIII CENTURY ENGLISH MIRROR CONSTRUCION.

THE MIRROR PLATE GLASS, WITH ITS CUSTOM ROSE COLORATION, IS AN EVOLUTION OF A TRADITIONAL MERCURY GLASS MIRROR, CREATED BY A GLASS MASTER RESTORER, WHO HAS WORKED ON THE MOST IMPORTANT HISTORIC EUROPEAN MIRRORED ROOMS OF THE XVIII CENTURY. THIRTY-EIGHT INDIVIDUALLY SHAPED GLASS MIRRORS WERE CREATED TO GIVE THE ILLUSION OF ONE LARGE MIRROR PLATE, AND THEY HAVE BEEN INSERTED IN THE BACK-STRUCTURE, IN PAIRING INLAID SHAPES BEFORE ALL THE CARVED SECTIONS HAVE BEEN JOINED TOGETHER.

THE WORK HAS BEEN INSTALLED UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF FABIANO PANZIRONI OF
APICE MILAN, AFTER BEEN CAREFULLY ASSEMBLED BY ALL THE ARTIST’S COLLABORATORS
IN THE ARMS ROOM, RESPECTING THE FRAGILITY OF THE ORIGINAL MARBLE FIREPLACE AND THE PERIOD BOISERIE.

FONDAZIONELUIGIROVATI.ORG

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