Banca rotta
Exhibition view - Kunstmuseum Olten 2014
carton, cardboard, metal, wood, pigments, egg tempera
187cm x 154cm x 198cm
2014
Photo by Stefan Altenburger
Banca rotta
At the time when the artist was invited for a solo exhibition at the Kunstmuseum Olten, the city of Olten, the museum and himself were all facing financial problems. The Kunstmuseum's survival was questioned by an important decrease of the city's tax revenue; as for Mirko, since 2011 his debts were constantly getting bigger due to the high expenses he was having for his artistic productions. 'Banca rotta' appeared therefore to be a natural consequence. Discovering the Renaissance origins of this term, he looked for an image of an exchange desk of that period to use as a model for a three-dimensional reproduction at a lower cost. Thanks to traditional painting techniques and careful work, he and Stefan Soler transformed modest materials into a precious object, that he hung from the ceiling to evoke the idea of precariousness. The work was on sale for a variable price, which was directly related to the fluctuation of the artist's debts, and emphasized its performative dimension.
