Ugo Rondinone
b. 1964, Switzerland
The Reliable, 2013
Blue stone, granite, steel
Sculpture 91.4 x 41.9 x 25.4 cm; Pedestal 96.52 x 43.18 x 43.18 cm
The Reliable is one of Ugo Rondinone’s bluestone sculptures created to complement his 2013 large-scale installation Human Nature at the Rockefeller Center in New York. Since the installation was made to show “something raw within an artificial environment”, The Reliable echoes Rondinone’s sentiments with the contrast between the natural simplicity of the sculpture and the artificial smoothness of its poured concrete pedestals. Beyond the roughness of the cut blocks that make up the sculpture’s human form, the methods of constructing the sculpture are also made obvious to the viewer, as visible traces of work such as drill-holes and split structures are hardly obscured from view. As such, the work reflects its material in its true natural state as a coarse material marked by weather and corrosion, and its placement in this carefully constructed exhibition space dismantles its enclosed, formal atmosphere by offering a taste of nature in its realest state.
Photo: Esther Schipper
Ugo Rondinone (b. 1964) is a Swiss artist working with and hybridising a wide range of mediums, including installation, sculpture, painting, large format drawings, and immersive video. Focused on the contemplation of everyday life, Rondinone co-opts the language of psychedelia and advertising to take on themes that he describes as the “mental trinity”: the complex relationship between humanity and nature, romanticism, and existentialism. As metaphors and iconography that borrow from ancient and modern cultures converge in Rondinone's practice, his works are at once humorous and heartfelt, while remaining directed at the most pressing issues of our time. Having represented Switzerland in the 57th Venice Biennale in 2007, Rondinone’s works have been presented in solo exhibitions globally since his 1985 debut, with some of the latest held at The Musée d’Art et d’Histoire, Geneva (2023), Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt (2022), and the Belvedere, Vienna (2021). Rondinone is also the recipient of the Swiss Art Award in the years 1991, 1994, and 1995.
