Yeo Workshop is pleased to present a selection of new and recent works by Bali-based artist Filippo Sciascia for Art Jakarta. Concerned with social evolution from prehistoric times to present day, Sciascia uses light as a grounding element throughout his works. It manifests in various forms and materials, which might not seem obvious in some paintings at first glance. From the incorporation of volcanic sand to synthetic fur, the artist skilfully manipulates materiality beyond mere representation of light itself, in turn, drawing observations and truth about society and our subconscious.
Sciascia uses the subtle incandescence of volcanic sand in Social Evolution (2020) to illuminate a graph that charts society’s transformation over the years. From the Industrial Revolution in the 20th Century to the digital age in present-day where we are constantly tied to our device screens, he combines the sensibilities of modernity with a profound understanding and interest in epistemology. Collectively titled Primitive Learning, these works reflect on the formation of knowledge from ancient and biological processes, with light being one core element universal to the human experience.
His works that reflect nature and foliage, irradiated by LED, have little to do with neon art; rather, they are tied towards the struggle between representation and reality. While they capture a fragment of ‘artificial’ light, they point towards underlying processes in nature and phylogenetics (the study of evolutionary relationships) that are dependent on or shaped by it. Similarly, the artist turns to classical painting in Primitive Learning (2022) to bring attention to a familiar reality – a woman lying in the dark with her phone. He relates our sensitivity to light with our circadian rhythm, which is now perpetually disrupted by our fixation with our devices.
Continuously seeking novel ways of expression, Sciascia resists the schema of art history to be confined to a singular movement. His works draw on a wide range of influences from Joseph Beuys to Egyptian art, physics theories by Richard Feynman to architecture in Bali, generating synergies between his works that demand a keen observer to uncover the semiotics within and across them.
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
FILIPPO SCIASCIA (b. 1972, Italy) works between figuration and abstraction, capturing the transitional process from one medium to another in an amalgamation of pixels, lines and forms. Based in Bali, Indonesia, the artist has explored the pictorial tensions between painting and new age technology, challenging the boundaries of painting as a practice. He places an emphasis on the process in his work rather than on the object, which demands a profound understanding of the character and history of each media.
Besides practising as an artist, the artist has contributed significantly to the Balinese art scene. He founded the Gaya Gallery ( active 1998 - 2008) as a platform for local Balinese artists and to network and provide residency artists across Yogyakarta such as Jumaldi Alfi, Ugo Untoro, S.Teddy Darmawan, Eko Nugroho, Mella Jaarsma, and collaborations with Cemeti Art House. He also showed the eminent curator and artist Robert Morgan. We can count his significant contributions to the Balinese contemporary art scene through the translation of the exhibitions to the Indonesian pavilion at the Venice Biennale with artists Made Wianta (2003) and Krisna Murti (2005). He continues to live and work in Bali and thrive within the community.
Sciascia has been exhibited internationally in Italy, USA and Southeast Asia, including Sarang I, Yogyakarta, Indonesia (2016); National Archaeological Museum of Naples, Italy (2013), Museum Castel Dell’ Ovo, Naples (2012); Langgeng Art Foundation, Yogyakarta (2011); 54th Exposition Venice Biennale (2011); National University of Singapore Museum (2010); Galleria Poggiali Firenze in Pietrasanta and Milan (2010); Valentine Willie Fine Art, Kuala Lumpur (2009), Yeo Workshop (2021).