Rolf Julius: Gray Music #1

Ten years after his first solo exhibition in 2001 – followed by the ones in 2005 and 2007 – for the fourth time Rolf Julius' work is showcased by e/static in Turin.
The German artist, who sadly passed away on 21st January, felt strongly involved in “Gray Music #1”, the preparation of which had already been undertaken since early 2010. A variety of his works will be displayed and, among them, there will be some very valuable ones, dating back to the early '80s: the one which the exhibition is named after, 15 black and white photographs accompanied by the homonymous musical composition (a work which was presented in this form in 1980 in Bremen for Pro Musica Nova), one series of black and one of ochre tempera drawings, made in 1983, during the time Julius resided at the PS1 in New York, and the famous Music for the eyes of 1982, probably the most renowned work among the ones created by the artist during his career.
Away from the big hall, in a secluded area of blank, several very recent works will also be exhibited, most of them created by Julius during the last months of his life, some just a couple of days before he passed away, when, already struck by his illness, he nevertheless maintained an extraordinary lucidity. This section of the exhibition, Room of Stillness II – after the first one, set up by e/static in 2007, as a part of “Two spaces (walking)” – is the most private and touching, because it allows the onlookers to approach what is perhaps – with its truly poignant freshness and clarity – the very essence of his poetics.
As far as the title of the exhibition is concerned, it was chosen, a few days before his passing, by Rolf Julius himself, instead of the temporary one formerly agreed on, in order to declare his firm intention to 'carry on', to not close his speech but to reopen it, so that his small musics could resonate in the air once more, again and forever, like in a sort of imaginary loop. As a matter of fact, the title echoes precisely the one of the 1980 exhibition, in its German form, “Graumusik #1” (this year was crucial for his career, since he took part in the epoch-making group exhibition “Für Augen und Ohren”, at the Akademie der Künste in Berlin) during which his work was showcased for the first time.
“Gray Music #1” will open on Thursday 14th April 2011, starting from 6.30 pm; the presentation of a special limited edition, Aktion Valencia Strand, based on a rare work from 1979, will follow on Thursday 26th May. The work itself will become part of the exhibition, replacing Graumusik #1, until the closing day set for the 16th July.