Magazzino Italian Art presents a video by Domenico Palma for New York Drive, a performance by artist Cristian Chironi which took place in Springs, New York City, and Cold Spring, NY. The series of performances from October 12-17, 2021, originated and were inspired by Sardinian artist Costantino Nivola, with whom Chironi shares a birthplace (the town of Orani in Sardinia, Italy). This week-long program was, therefore, also organized in conjunction with the exhibition which was on view at Magazzino Italian Art, Nivola: Sandscapes which explored Nivola’s unique body of sandcast works from the early 1950s to the 1970s. New York Drive invited the public to hop aboard Chironi’s colorful Fiat 127 – a vehicle that is closely linked to Nivola’s life story.
For New York Drive, Chironi was accompanied by a number of co-pilots, including museum professionals and art workers, gallerists, journalists, activists, philanthropists, students, and professors. Members of the public were invited to participate by responding to our open call, which began on October 5th, 2021. The drives commenced on October 12th from Springs, NY, where Nivola made a home for himself and his family after emigrating to the United States. It continued on October 14th and 15th with two consecutive days of drives between the Italian Consulate and Italian Cultural Institute in New York City and the United Nations to acknowledge the event that brought Le Corbusier to New York and initiated his contact with Nivola. New York Drive concluded at Magazzino Italian Art in Cold Spring on October 16th and 17th. The car was parked at the museum following the final performance and remained on view until the closing of Nivola: Sandscapes on January 10, 2022. There was a series of musical compositions played throughout the duration of its exhibition at the museum, based on recordings that Chironi took at various homes designed by Le Corbusier around the world and produced in collaboration with international sound artists and musicians.
With this program, the artist hoped to invite community members to consider a variety of concepts from immigration and memory to home-building and the histories of different locations in relation to our present moment. As a participatory performance, New York Drive sought to inspire people to come together for a unique moment of in-person exchange and dialogue – something that has become increasingly foreign since the beginning of the pandemic. The year 2021 also marks the 50th anniversary of the Fiat 127, designed by Pio Manzù in 1971.
Film by Domenico Palma.
Filmed by Angelo Vasta and Patrick Ginnetty.
