Giuseppe Penone

3 Apr-1 Sep 2025

Overview

Serpentine presents a solo exhibition by Italian artist Giuseppe Penone (b. 1947, Garessio). This will be the most comprehensive survey of his practice in a major London institution, featuring sculptures and works on paper from 1977 to today. A leading figure in Arte Povera, Penone experimented with a wide range of materials including wood, iron, wax, bronze, terracotta, and plaster, bringing their individual physical qualities to the fore. Situated in the surroundings of Kensington Gardens, the exhibition will showcase the artist’s continued interest in the relationship between humans and the natural world.

With a career spanning over five decades, Penone’s expansive oeuvre encompasses sculptures, drawings, painting, installations, and photography. Born in Garessio, a village near Cuneo, Italy, Penone is influenced by the forested region of Northern Italy. The vegetal world is a central subject in his work, creating his first Alberi (Trees) in 1969, he cites the tree as ‘primal and most simple idea of vitality, of culture, of sculpture’. Through uncovering the visual, tactile and olfactory aspects of the materials he uses, Penone’s work highlights the interconnected nature of beings, both living and non-living, in existence.

Giuseppe Penone’s work has been featured in exhibitions worldwide, including at the Fondazione Ferrero, Alba, (2024-2025); Galleria Borghese, Rome (2023); Centre Pompidou, Paris (2022, 2004); Philadelphia Museum of Art (2022); Villa Medici, Rome (2021) and Palais d'léna - CESE, Paris, France (2019). He currently lives and works in Turin, Italy.

Ecologies at Serpentine encompass myriad convenings, networks, infrastructural and long-term research projects which hold ecology and the environment at their core. Giuseppe Penone was one of the participants of the Garden Marathon featured at Serpentine in 2011. This two-day event was an exploration of the concept of the garden. The artist is also featured in the book 140 Artists' Ideas for Planet Earth, published by Serpentine and Penguin.