Nr. 121 - TERZO PARADISIAN 2020, MAT.

100 x 120 x 30 cm, vulcanised rubber.

This sculpture in the “Garden of Tyred Utopia’s” (Cat. Nr. i23) represents the Third Paradise (Il Terzo Paradiso) as envisioned by artist Michelangelo Pistoletto. It is the infinity symbol with its two circles, expanded to create a third circle in the middle. The original two circles represent a duality, in particular that of the past vs. the future and that of the natural vs. the artificial. The present, the point in between is opened to create a third circle (or a “long now”) that is the third paradise in which humanity must experiment to overcome the deficiencies of modern dualistic thought.

The word “paradise” is rooted in ancient Persian and means “walled garden”:  a garden that is protected from the aridity of the surrounding desert, a garden in which nature is controlled, selected and contained by the artistry of the human being.

For Michelangelo Pistoletto, that garden, that third paradise, must now be identified with the entire planet Earth, wrapped in a thin and fragile layer of atmosphere that constitutes its wall enclosure and protects it from the vacuum of outer space. … all human beings have to become increasingly conscious of their responsibility as “gardeners”, i.e. as the makers of their own environment. (Text in italics by Michelangelo Pistoletto)