Curated by Gianluca Marziani
Conference room and terrace
Promoted by Roma Capitale, Assessorato alle Politiche Culturali e Centro Storico – Sovraintendenza ai Beni Culturali
Adrian Tranquilli’s project "All is violent. All is bright" is a narrative which, in two large installations full of surprises and bewildering effects, transforms the museum into a theatrical performance of the fight between Batman and Joker, archetypal characters from the artist’s iconographic universe. The figure of Batman, which is visible from outside the museum because it is placed at the highest point on the terrace above the new Via Nizza entrance, stands on sinuous surfaces, designed by architect Odile Decq, as a mysterious figure in an amphitheatre of surrounding buildings. On the roof of the conference room, the heart of the museum, the other half of the narrative emerges unexpectedly: Saint Peter’s Basilica made of thousands of playing cards depicting different ‘faces’ of the Joker, repeated and alternated to the point of obsession, creating a quasi hypnotic effect. By exploiting the outside and inside of MACRO, Tranquilli suspends time and recreates atavistic feelings, mysterious rituals, revelations and wanderings. A sculptural vision of the universal themes and values that characterize human nature.