Eugenio Re Rebaudengo
Eugenio Re Rebaudengo'S
LEADING CULTURE DESTINATIONS (TBA):
Eugenio Re Rebaudengo is an entrepreneur, collector and curator with a passion for contemporary art. He founded ARTUNER in 2013 with the goal of creating an innovative hybrid art platform for artists and collectors, and since then, has organised over 25 international exhibitions with over 100 artists. Re Rebaudengo holds an MSc degree with Distinction in Management, Organisations and Governance from the London School of Economics and has been integral to his family’s own art foundation – Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo – reflected in his appointment to the Board of Directors in 2008. Not one to rest upon his laurels, he is also on the Committee of the Tate Young Patrons, Serpentine Gallery Future Contemporaries and Whitechapel First Future. Here, the 2018 LCD Select Jury member tells us why the lesser-known Italian town of Torino is one of the country’s hidden gems and explains why art is the best resistance we have in a divided era.
IF THERE WAS ONE PIECE OF ARTWORK YOU COULD FEATURE IN, WHICH ONE WOULD IT BE?
I’m fascinated by a very large-scale painting by David Czupryn entitled Butonblows. It will be shown at Kunsthalle Darmstadt this October, Inspired by the Egyptian surrealist Mayo’s major work ‘Coups de Batons’. it represents a group of highly stylised wooden figures fighting, in a sort of gigantomachia. I love how Czupryn conveyed the tension and élan of these figures – their grace surpasses any notion of aggression.
HOW DO YOU BELIEVE MUSEUMS WILL IMPACT FUTURE CITIES?
In the past 20 years, we have witnessed a growing trend in many cities to open major contemporary art museums, such as Tate Modern in London, and to expand existing ones. Placing these new additions in neighborhoods or cities not traditionally exposed to art has a strong positive impact in shaping cultural activities. It encourages economic growth and tourism in their respective communities. This is something I personally follow very closely, as my family’s Foundation, the Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo in Turin, will open a new branch in Madrid in the near future.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE CULTURAL DESTINATION, AND WHY?
I might be biased as it’s my hometown, but I believe that Torino, in Piedmont (Italy) is a true hidden gem. There are so many exciting cultural institutions, appealing to many different tastes: the Egyptian museum, the GAM for Modern Art, the OGR for Contemporary Art, and amongst many other private institutions (such as Pinacoteca Agnelli and Fondazione Merz), there is also, of course, the Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo.
WHO DO YOU THINK ARE THE CULTURAL INNOVATORS OF TOMORROW?
We are very lucky right now to live in such a connected world, and this goes beyond social media. Different fields of knowledge are deeply and increasingly more connected. There is so much (productive) overlapping between music, fashion, art, design, technology, and so on, and this is leading to really interesting results. I strongly believe that the people who will be able to bring about innovation, will come from extremely diversified and eclectic backgrounds.
WHAT ARE YOU UP TO AT THE MOMENT AND WHERE CAN WE FIND IT?
Right now, I’m very excited about two exhibitions we will organise in the autumn with ARTUNER; in London during Frieze and in Turin during Artissima. I am also really looking forward to the institutional shows two of ARTUNER - represented artists will be featured in this autumn: Paul Kneale will present a work at ‘Peindre la Nuit’ at Centre Pompidou Metz (France), while David Czupryn will have his first institutional solo show ‘He She It’ at Kunsthalle Darmstadt (Germany).
PICASSO FAMOUSLY SAID THAT 'ART WASHES THE DUST OF DAILY LIFE FROM OUR SOULS' - WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE PURPOSE OF ART?
My good friend and mentor Hans-Ulrich Obrist once wrote: “Gerhard Richter says art is the supreme form of hope. To that I would further add: Art is the best form of resistance against annihilation through standardization.” I believe this is very true: any cultural initiative should make us reflect and push us to think independently in order to never stop innovating and going forward.