With the exhibition Terry Atkinson. The Artist as an Engine of Meaning, the Dom Pérignon Rooms of Ca’ Pesaro host the first major solo show ever dedicated to the English artist by an Italian institution—one of the most original and provocative figures of contemporary conceptual art.
Curated by Elisabetta Barisoni and Elena Forin, the exhibition retraces over fifty years of work—from the 1960s to the 2000s—interweaving art, language and politics in a project that is both historical analysis and ethical reflection.
The British artist Terry Atkinson (Thurnscoe, 1939), who recently entered the collections of Tate Gallery in London, was one of the founders of the Art & Language collective, a group that from the 1970s onwards radically redefined the role of the artist as thinker and critic of the art system. His practice emerges from the dialogue between word and image, between concept and vision, questioning the conventions of representation and inviting viewers to examine the relationships between knowledge, power and history.
The Venetian exhibition opens with a large painting on paper dedicated to the Vietnam War, where painting becomes a tool of political and moral analysis. This is followed by the Goya Series and the Enola Gay works—emblematic cycles in which Atkinson investigates war and collective memory. In the coloured skies of the latter series lies the silhouette of the Hiroshima bomber, a symbol of the fragile balance between beauty and destruction, silence and tragedy.
The Russel cycle, on the other hand, places language at the core of the work: words such as “I” and “This” become instruments for reflecting on the relationship between subject, experience and history. In Atkinson’s works, semantics merges with painting, and language becomes a critical image of the world.
The exhibition also includes a selection of drawings and works on paper from the 1960s to the 2020s, documenting the continuity of his investigation. From early experiments with Art & Language to more recent works addressing the Irish and American conflicts, a consistent tension emerges between theoretical rigour and visual intensity.
Also known by various artistic alter egos—including Terry Actor, Terry Mirrors, Terry Dog and Terry Enola Gay—Atkinson has exhibited in major museums worldwide: from Documenta 5 (1972) with Art & Language to the Whitechapel Gallery (1983), and the 41st Venice Biennale (1984), where he participated as an independent artist. In 1985 he was shortlisted for the Turner Prize, confirming his pivotal role in the critical discourse surrounding contemporary art.
Galleria Internazionale d’Arte Moderna
C. del Tentor, 2076
Date
15 novembre 2025 - 1 marzo 2026
