Perna was part of a generation of Venezuelan artists who departed from geometric and kinetic abstraction, turning instead to more autobiographical and intimate subject matter, and often involving friends, students, lovers, and collaborators in their work. This enigmatic assemblage, made from garden shears attached to a kickstand, incorporates emotion—perhaps an elegy—with the addition of a single rose. It was a gift to a friend, the artist Pedro Tagliafico.

Gallery label from

Chosen Memories, April 30–September 9, 2023

Provenance

The artist
Pedro Tagliafico, Caracas
1997, Colección Patricia Phelps de Cisneros, New York, and Caracas
2017, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, acquired as gift from Patricia Phelps de Cisneros.

Medium Metal stand, garden shears, wire, felt, rubber, and rose
Dimensions 47 1/8 x 11 1/2 x 9 1/8" (119.5 x 29 x 23 cm)
Credit Gift of Patricia Phelps de Cisneros through the Latin American and Caribbean Fund in honor of Luis Enrique Pérez-Oramas
Object number 573.2017
Department Painting & Sculpture

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Claudio Perna

Claudio Perna

Venezuelan, born Italy. 1938–1997 15 works online

Geographer, archivist, explorer, and traveler: these are some of the terms one could use to describe Claudio Perna. During the mid-1960s, he began a prolific artistic career exploring new mediums and technologies.

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