“STUDY OF A TORSO”

GALLERY BASSENGE

AUCTION 5,JUNE,2024

welcome to place your bid HERE

“PHILIPP WITH VASE” & “HYSTERIA No. 157 by Chanel”.

Was auctioned @ Galerie Bassenge. on Dec.7.2022

Giclée prints on archival Museum Fine Art paper. 50 x 60 cm (62,5 x 70 cm).

Signed, titled, dated and editioned 2/3 in pencil and photographer's stamp on the verso.

The diptych of

“THE TEMPTATION OF SAINT ANTHONY”

here below

was showing at the Art Fair VISION at Palazzo BEMBO

Riva del Carbon 30124 Venice Gran Canal,Italy

From June 17 to July 6 2022

during the 59th Venice Biennale.

I’ve taken inspiration from a well known painting by Michelangelo and a famous engraving by Schongauer. The Temptation of Saint Anthony is the subject of those masterpieces; specifically the supernatural temptation faced by Saint Anthony the Great during his stay in the Egyptian desert. He is represented as an old man who remains stoic while ambushed and attacked in mid-air by demons. 

My new work reimagines this. I’ve replaced the old figures of Saint Anthony with young, strong, alluring men. They are projected over the old masterpieces. I wanted to show that resisting temptation is not just the preserve of the mature. You don’t need to have lots of life experience in order to overcome life’s temptations. Young people battle with good and bad spirits too. 

I also play with the themes of defiance and ascension. It is reported that Saint Anthony was living in a cave in Egypt when the devil attacked him and left him half-dead. A friend found him and helped him recover. Once Saint Anthony regained consciousness, he asked to be sent back to fight these demons who took the shape of animals and beasts. In my art, the faces of the young men are neutral yet defiant. The demons' attempts to grip and attack their sculpted bodies fail. The young men rise up. Naturally, this is a nod to achieving celestial ascent and securing a place in heaven. 

Beauty, proportions, shapes and youth are part of my signature style. This is very much reflected in these works. There is also a personal angle to this set of fine photographs. My father’s name is Antonio (Anthony); a man who has struggled with temptation much of his life. These works gave me an opportunity to reflect on my father’s behaviors and patterns from a place of kindness. 

Bio

Vincenzo Laera's creative career began in the 1980s in the fashion industry of his hometown of Milan, Italy.

Laera's personal photography is dedicated to the exploration of the Human Form, beauty, and eros. It reflects the experiences he has made with the icons of fashion photography. His sense of composition and light gives his work a certain elegance that shows the influence of the photographers he worked with. Concurrently, Laera's work is determined by the intensive examination of art and cultural history. Raised in a Catholic family, his work references the traditions of Christian iconography, Italian Renaissance, and early Baroque art.

Full biography here.