Viola Angiolini is the director of research, curatorial and European liaison at Jeffrey Deitch Gallery, a modern and contemporary gallery with spaces in New York and Los Angeles.
Is there any particular moment you can remember of having first realized your
passion for the arts?
I
recall an afternoon at the Milanese residence of Giovanna Panza di Biumo, wife
of the late Italian collector and champion of Minimalism and Land Art. She passionately
shared enviable memories about her meetings with artists and travels through
canyons and desert lands. As the hours passed by, the light in the apartment changed,
affecting the monochromatic paintings in her living room and making the
experience almost mystical. I was already studying art at that point but that
was such a memorable encounter.
How
did you initially get involved with curating at Jeffrey Deitch?
On
the second day of the BFA program I attended in Milan, the professor walked
into the class holding a copy of Post Human, the catalog of Jeffrey’s landmark
exhibition that traveled through several European museums in 1992 and 1993. I
started working at his gallery after graduating from the Institute of Fine Arts
in New York.
As
director of Research, Curatorial, and European Liaison, you must have your
hands quite full. What does a typical day in the office look like for you?
Typically,
I spend most of the day doing office work in support of exhibition coordination,
liaising with artists, collectors, curators and press. Studio visits with
artists and exhibition walkthroughs are often on the agenda too.
What
do you find most rewarding about being a gallerist?
Helping
artists to realize their vision and gaining a deeper understanding of their work
while doing so are the most fulfilling aspects of my job. For this reason, I
especially enjoy the planning process and installation phase of an exhibition.
When
selecting artists to work with, what kinds of qualities do you specifically
look for?
It
depends on the project, its context and theme, but generally I admire work that
is personal to the artist but that also addresses pressing issues. I also
appreciate an artist’s ability to dialogue with the history of art and other
forms of expression in deep and unexpected ways.
Can
you recall any experiences you’ve had with an exhibit and/or artist that were
especially fulfilling to you?
I
recently organized at our main Los Angeles gallery a survey of the late artist
Rammellzee, whose estate we represent. The show featured over 200 works,
including drawings, paintings, costumes and sculptures—some floating from the
ceiling. It was possibly the most expansive exhibition of the artist’s work to
date. Everyone involved – from the lenders to the installers – was
exceptionally dedicated to the project and contributed so much to the show. It
was a real team effort.
Do
you have any upcoming plans for Jeffrey Deitch Gallery we should know about?
Besides
the gallery’s dynamic program of exhibitions, we have been developing several
book projects. I have been working with a number our artists on their first
monographs, some of which will be coming out this year. I will also be editing
a publication about Luncheon on the Grass, the exhibition of
contemporary responses to Édouard Manet’s Le Déjeuner sur l’herbe that I
organized with Jeffrey at our Los Angeles gallery. The book will feature
scholarly essays and interviews with the over 30 artists who participated in
the show.
