Video Art. The Castello di Rivoli Collection

Through a history spanning four decades, video art has undergone many transformations that have become an integral part of the visual culture of our century. While in its early years video was sometimes used by artists to record performances conducted within the isolation of the studio, it also offered an important creative realm that enabled the delineation of new spaces and offered an alternative language to the standardized codes employed by television. From an image tied to monitor broadcasting, video evolved to a projected image, capable of defining a new typology of space, within which viewers could move about, surrounded by a hypnotic electronic embrace. More recently, the dissemination of digital technology has allowed artists to compete with the magic of cinema and to establish with it a particular relationship of fertile exchange, which has been fundamental in the development of the poetics of many young artists.

This publication presents the video collection of the Castello di Rivoli Museum of Contemporary Art and provides an indispensable tool in analyzing this significant section of the Museum’s collections. Organized according to curatorial entries for each artist, this book contains information and critical notes on the works, offering a discerning view of the history of this innovative artistic medium and representing an international cross-section of its most significant artists.

Founded in 1984, the Castello di Rivoli Museum of Contemporary Art is recognized as one of the most prominent museums of international stature. Its collections, exhibitions, and catalogues published to date have contributed to the development and scholarly study of contemporary art.