Archi di Daniel Buren (Arches by Daniel Buren), La Spezia

The square co-signed by the great artist with the architect Vannetti, as part of an intervention for the redevelopment and pedestrianization of the public space, will however only be complete in a month. And in the meantime the controversies are heating up. Daniel Buren's intervention consists of a progression of colored arches that accompany the pedestrian walkway, of "portals" that frame the background, in a play of geometric shapes and primary and complementary colors that would recall the mosaic of Palazzo delle Poste, in the same square (and not football fanaticism, as some malicious people would have suggested). The arches are accompanied by black-white pillars that punctuate the space with their presence. But the designer and Buren let it be known that it will be the last 20 days of work that will make citizens understand how everything works, with the lights and the last pillars. Finally, the French artist pointed out, as reported by the news of the Ligurian territory, that there was no shortage of controversy even over his intervention at the Palais Royal in Paris, subsequently visited by 90 million people in 30 years. As they say, time will be gentle. Here are some images of the square…

The new Piazza Verdi in La Spezia will be completed next month, an urban public space that combines the redevelopment curated by architect Giannantonio Vannetti with work by Daniel Buren.
Winner of the Golden Lion for the best pavilion at the 1986 Venice Biennale, Buren enjoys international popularity and is the creator of several works that measure themselves on the urban scale. The French painter and sculptor intervened in this area by proposing a succession of colored arches that rise along a prominent pedestrian walkway, on the ground. These frames, in perfect alignment, are characterized by an intense use of color, according to what is one of Buren's stylistic features. The arches frame the background, creating a rhythm between basic geometry and primary and complementary colors that intends to evoke the mosaic of Palazzo delle Poste, also located on Piazza Verdi. While waiting to definitively change its appearance, the combined action of redevelopment and redesign continues in the square; Among the expected results is also complete pedestrianization at the end of the works. ***PH***