Gioli’s innovative photographic work, that parallels his films, is quite well known in Europe. His photographs are in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, The Art Institute of Chicago, The Minneapolis Museum of Art, The Houston Fine Arts Museum, and the George Eastman Museum. European institutions include the Centre Pompidou, the Société Française de la Photograhie, Paris, the Musée Européen de la Photographie, :Paris, the Musée Etienne-Jules Marey in Beaune, the Musée Nicéphore Niépce, Chalon s/Saône, the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna, Rome, and the Museo di Fotografia Contemporanea, Milan. His photographs were exhibited in the Italian Pavilion of the Venice Biennale in 2015.
He has had numerous gallery shows in Europe, but much less in the U.S. so Be-hold is proud to represent his exciting work. For this exhibit we have selected photographs from his “Historical Series.” These are subtle complex works mostly from the 1980’s that pay homage to some of the great photographers of the past, such as Niépce, Cameron, Eakins and Marey. They involve complex procedures including a method of transferring a Polaroid image onto other materials such as silk that Gioli developed. . Each work is unique. They have elements of photo-collage, but contain other elements as well. The titles are witty but the works have serious implications representing an avant-garde tribute and response to the work of these early photographers.
His procedures are seemingly simple and playful, in the spirit of experimentation that was present in early photographs. The various materials that make up the photographs can be best seem in close examination of the unique prints. They are less visible in reproductions. So this is a unique opportunity to experience these works directly.