Art Islands in Tokyo

東京の島々を結ぶアート航路開発委員会、Art Islands in Tokyo／アートアイランズ。波浮港国際現代美術展／The International Contemporary Art Exhibition at Habu Harbor, Izu-Oshima, Tokyo

デッサルドマルコ [イタリア]　MARCO DESSARDO [ITALY]

Marco Dessardo is a sculptor. All around the world.

When invited, he comes with a project and a limited set of tools. After a reasonable moment of wandering and drinking coffees, he inserts his creation made of local material. Most of the time, the project is executed, but the output is always unexpected, highly influenced by local context.
Most often the sculpture turns out to be a house, sort of. Or a long stuff, a link with, even floating sometimes... other stuff.

As a conclusion, he tries to make films on the spot. To tell stories. When photos and films are uploaded to dessardo.com, the sculpture is declared completed.

website

Diploma: Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris in 1984
Languages: French, English, Italian, Spanish, Dutch

Marco Dessardo was born in Belgium to Italian parents. He was educated as a stone sculptor in Brussels and Paris.
He lived for some years in Lucainena de las Torres, in the Andalusian mountains, working on local Spanish marble. The sculptures were painted and glued, being exhibited in Madrid (catalog Galería Bárcena & Cía), Paris (Chromolithes), and Brussels (catalog Atelier 34O). Back to France in 1993 and facing real estate problems, he focused on a series of Foldable and Disposable sculptures in his Rungis studio located in Paris in the middle of a recycling factory. During this period some artworks were not insured during the exhibitions because insurance companies are not used to deal with «disposable» objects. The disposable theme continued on later with the Junk Trail, the organization of a recycling art system of junk produced by the activities of local artists over the previous 10 years. A still active bazaar (catalog KQ Series by IPark Foundation, Inc. Connecticut, USA).
Because his sculptures were progressively becoming too big to be easily moved, he began larger site specific works built in-situ. Having opportunities to exhibit in various different outdoor places around the world, like China, Lapland, Mexico, The Netherlands, Cuba, Korea, Germany, Chili, his work became more and more influenced by local context. Focusing on the context, some themes developed, one of them was to do As Local People Do. To be inspired by local constructions without necessarily revealing the original purpose. Integration to a context for a sculptor may be copying local forms (catalog Inserts, SSIS, France).
Later, back in galleries, the question was how to be site specific in a gallery: transcending the white cube (catalog Wasserstand, Kunsverein Ingolstadt, Germany) or copying the behavior of a local artist (catalog Local, Office d'Art Contemporain, Brussels).
The context becoming a leading purpose, he had stories to tell around each work and each place. These stories or fictions are recorded in small movies with the installation as subject or pretext. These movies became part of the installations - that he continues to name sculptures - and are screened on site.
When not traveling for his work, Dessardo now resides nearby Paris in a small village. There, when he doesn’t rest, he works every day on drawings, making a logbook.

SITE SPECIFIC SCULPTURES AND PUBLIC INSTALLATIONS

2016: Éloge de la Fuite, a sculpture integrated to new building of the Bruegel Cultural Center, Brussels, Belgium (catalog)
Lento, a boat built to escape from Archipelago Art Residence in Korpoo, Finland
2015: The Loudspeakers, Tsukuba International Art-in-Residence, Tsukuba, Japan
Extend (the desire), installation at the Neuer Worpsweder Kunstverein, Worpswede, Germany
2014: Prosthesis, Abiko International Open-Air Exhibition, Abiko, Chiba, Japan
Copy, Ölspur exhibition, sculpture installed in the Bayernoil Raffineriegesellschaft, Neustadt an der Donau, Germany
2013: Extension de Poulailler, sculpture et vidéo réalisés pour les Conviviales de Nannay, à Nannay, France
Water Breathing Sculpture, homenage to Bettie E. Bates for Ralph Crispino, East Haddam, Connecticut, USA
Gargouilles, gargouilles métalliques et pompes à eau installées dans la chai de la mairie de Creysse pour la biennale Ephémère et les Rives de l’Art, Creysse, France (catalogue)
Becoming a YATOO Artist and Gargoyles, two installations created during the YATOO Nature Art Residence in Wongol, South Korea (catalogue)
Essai d’Installation à Wattwiller, ma maison sur la cascade et sa vidéo, pour La Fête de l’Eau à Wattwiller,
Wattwiller, France (catalogue)
2012: Local, an installation of a sixty meters iron foldable structure and two videos in the Office d'Art Contemporain gallery in Brussels, Belgium (solo, catalogue)
2011: Proto-Gonzo Opening, art works created under Proto-Gonzo rules with Benoît Félix, Sonia Megìas, Thomas Neumaier, Nick Normal, and Pat van Boeckel in I-Park Foundation, East Haddam, Connecticut, USA
Dix Goulottes et un Parasite pour les Rives de l’Art sur l’escalier d’écluses de Tuilières-Mouleydier, France
A Zone is created for the Tschernobyl 25 Expeditionen exhibition in the Westwendischen Kunstvereins in Gartow, Germany
2010: Creation of the Junk Trail, a new order in the junk of I-Park Foundation, East Haddam, Connecticut, USA
As Local People Do, installation for the Out Of Space symposium in Rottige Meente, Nijetrijne, Friesland, The Netherlands
2009: Construction and installation of the Wheelbridge on the Height Mile River in I-Park, East Haddam, Connecticut, USA
Osougil Project, International Art Festival, Mobilosan, Daeryong, South Korea
A Waterfall for Open House event in I-Park, East Haddam, Connecticut, USA
Conduites Forcées pour le Parcours des Fées, Crévoux, Hautes Alpes, France
2008: Residence for future projects: Bridge on the Height Mile River in I-Park, East Haddam, Connecticut, USA
I-Park Residence, Thanks to the Pipes, East Haddam, Connecticut, USA
Erddach, for the Nature art symposium in Institut für Kunst und Handwerk, Kloster Lehnin, Germany
Kiekzog Residence, Waterloop, Flevoland, The Nederlands
Invitation Land Art In Situ 03, Camouflage, Camargue, France
2007: I-Park Residence, Stylite Exodus, East Haddam, Connecticut, USA
Relief for the Zhongkun Invest Culture Group, To The Death, Beijing, China
Festival Chemin d’Art, La Gouttière du Pont, Saint Flour, France
Inselsommer Festival, Exodus am Rhein, Ludwigshafen am Rhein, Germany
Kunstverein Gallery, Wasserstand, Ingolstadt, Germany
Festival des Jardins Métissés, Irrigation Anglaise, Wesserling, France
2004: Busan Biennale, Sea Art Festival, biennale first jury’s prize, Penta & Stone, Busan, Korea
Geumgang Nature Art Biennale, Mul Gil, Kongju, Korea
Fête de mai, Aqueduc, Gesves, Belgium
2003: Yusi Paradize International Sculpture Symposium, Pan-Ta, Shanghai, China
Luleå Summer Biennial, Superbricks, biennial’s first prize, Luleå, Sweden
Parque Cementerio de Carretas, Centro de Extracción de Cadenas Parasísmicas, Putaendo, Chile

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