Alberto Garutti

The publication constitutes the most complete overview of the activities of Alberto Garutti, introducing his practice, prevalently in the fields of sculpture, installations and public art. Conceptualized by the late Germano Celant, the volume contains an essay by Antonella Soldaini, a historical-critical time line edited by Eva Fabbris, a selection of statements by the artist and a full range of illustrations and documents to narrate Garutti's creative career, starting from the early 1970s. The innovative value of Garutti's language is based on several key concepts such as the respect for the site in which the work is placed, the focus on the surrounding social realities, and in-depth knowledge of the context. These methodological strategies applied by Garutti for the first time in the early 1990s have profoundly changed the vocabulary of public and site-specific art.

Alberto Garutti (1948-2023) has been a key figure within the Italian and European contemporary art scene of the last forty years. From the early 1990s Garutti developed his practice as a form of public art radical manifesto. His works in the urban context - commissioned by cities and institutions across the world - have been designed as open devices conceived to re-imagine forms of social engagement. Practicing art in the public space and being a referential teacher - at the Academy of Brera in Milan and at IUAV in Venice - for several generations of Italian authors, Alberto Garutti is considered today one of the most influential Italian artist of his generation.