IFC Mall
Reviewed: June 3
One man's junk is another man's treasure, but Italian sculptor Roberto Cipollone, alias 'Ciro', goes one step further by transforming discarded rubbish into compositions of landscapes, portraits and objects. Cipollone's inaugural exhibition in Hong Kong is part of Italy 2005: Quality & Lifestyle, a week-long celebration that includes music, fashion, food, wine and film.
Cipollone established his workshop, Bottega di Ciro, in Loppiano in 1982. He creates sculptures from iron, wood and stone. The exhibition contains some of his carefully arranged, mannered compositions from
the past 10 years. His choice of perfectly oxidised pieces of metal bring his simple works to life.
Exercises at the Bar, for example, employs rusty nails, poised to resemble figures at a balance beam, while Araldi is a trio of soldiers standing guard. The restricted exhibition space in the middle of IFC Mall doesn't do the pieces justice, and pedestrian traffic is limited on the shopping centre's second level, but one man's vision of junk is worth the effort.
