Jannis Kounellis. Labyrinth without Walls draws inspiration from the artist’s childhood in the port of Piraeus, and his connection with the sea as a space for cultural exchange. A key figure in arte povera, the work of Jannis Kounellis (Piraeus, Greece, 1936 - Rome, 2017) is a journey through time, the odyssey of persistence or the obsessive return to ideas that need to be infused with new meaning. He aptly defined himself as both an ancient man and a modern painter, as his vision was archaeological, like an excavation into the memory that was based on a critical re-reading of the past, interpreted through his own, radically contemporary language.

This exhibition emerges as a wreckage of sorts, on the basis of elements that allude to travel, migration and maritime transport, fundamental for globalisation, though now almost obsolete. Kounellis expresses a longing for the poetic dimension of travel, lost in the industrial age, and that sense of physical and emotional displacement features prominently in the exhibition.

One of the installations comprises a set of nine Venetian sails arranged in the shape of a fan, symbolising his connection with the Mediterranean and a critical nostalgia regarding the transformation of maritime trade and the absence of the individual imprint on its industry today. Other sails are stretched and folded over steel frames. Marked by use, they retain the memory of their previous life at sea. Kounellis invites a reflection on the human imprint on objects, as well as on painting and its possibilities. All of this is evident in the series, Albatros (Albatross), works composed of broken sections of a wooden boat that are suspended in front of steel plates hanging askew, evoking the wear and tear and the memory of the objects. Ever implicit in Kounellis' work is a drama that needs to be deciphered. He is never a neutral artist; neither are his materials nor those of his supports. Here, the labyrinth is an inner journey, a delving into the abyss in search of a lost centre; and infiltrating history is akin to venturing into the ocean to surrender oneself to a labyrinth without walls.

Exhibition co-produced with Es Baluard Museu, in collaboration with KEWENIG, Palma / Berlin and Archivio Kounellis.