Lorenzelli Arte, historic Milanese gallery, opens the 2019 exhibition season on February 14th with an exhibition dedicated to Herbert Ferber (1906-1991) one of the leading abstract expressionist sculptors, artist of international renown, already active in the fervent New York of the XNUMXs and XNUMXs.
Already in 1988 the Galleria Lorenzelli, in the via Sant'Andrea headquarters, hosted the first Italian solo exhibition of Ferber. Today, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the gallery's activity, Matteo Lorenzelli is re-proposing the artist's works in the rooms of Corso Buenos Aires 2, creating the rare occasion in Italy to be able to admire a master whose works are present in the most important museums of the world including the MoMa, the Whitney Museum and the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the National Gallery in Washington and the Center Pompidou in Paris.
Ferber, great friend of Rothko, to whom he was related by common convictions in art and politics, after the war he became an important member of the New York School, joining that group of American artists who paved the way for abstract expressionism. Both Rothko and Ferber showed real interest in classical mythology trying to explore archetypal and timeless forms according to one of the typical paths of the artists who composed the School.
"Sculpture as a metaphor for an idea” is the title of the exhibition, this represents a principle dear to Ferber: sculpture must have the ability to embody a lucid and strong mental process and therefore possess the value of a metaphor that conveys abstract ideal qualities. In the XNUMXs, Faber abandoned figuration and presented sculptures made up of familiar forms but manipulated into almost unrecognizable compositions.
While self-taught as an artist, becomes a skilled draftsman to the point of succeeding in all techniques – from watercolor to pen and ink, from pastel to gouache and acrylic – on any paper quality, works that offer the opportunity for a re-reading of his work. By modeling and "chiaroscurando" the forms, Ferber in his more abstract sheets manages perfectly to communicate the sense of volume and space.
HERBERT FERBER Sculpture as a metaphor for an idea Lorenzelli Arte (Milan) 15 February – 30 April 2019
