Will-O-Wisp

F2T Gallery and Amanita present their first collaboration show Will-O-Wisp, curated by Adrian Schachter and Caio Twombly. Featuring works by Eva Beresin, Anders Lindseth, Marco Scarpi and Adrian Schachter, the show explores the theme of fire.

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“I had a fleeting fascination with pyromania as a child. I went to stay with a school friend and his family many years ago in the British countryside. For a reason with which I cannot empathize today, I convinced my friend to help me set a tree on fire. His mother came by to see if we wanted to go horse riding. She saw billows of smoke and needless to say, she was livid. I was ashamed.

Why was I so transfixed by fire? Did my ability to start a fire lend me a power that children otherwise did not have? I thought I was alone in this secret passion that is thankfully no longer with me. After some research however, I now see that this was not an isolated case: every week 400 fires are started by children playing with fire. This leads to 150 deaths and 1,000 injuries per year. It is ironic that fire is at once a developmental catalyst for human achievement, and also an indicator of our sinisterness, ignorance, or lack of responsibility. 80% of wildfires in the US are caused by people. Are you surprised?

Our controlling of fire, 1.7-2 million years ago, dictated the way that we evolved: did fire create hedonism? When we began to cook our food, less energy was needed by our digestive tract. Thus we could afford to apply effort elsewhere. Bonfires meant that human activity could continue later into the night. It also meant that pigments of ochre, umber, etc. could become a means of visual expression. Does that mean that we owe art as we know it to fire? We may not know what lead early sapiens to become existentially aware but it’s safe to say that fire was instrumental in the process.

On a more fundamental level, earth is the only planet we know of that allows for bio-respiration as well as combustion. So whether we harnessed fire or not, we wouldn’t be here without it. It is clear then, that fire is a paramount element in our world. Just as destruction is embedded in the cycle of life, fire is a theme that artists will continuously pursue.

Accompanied by these thoughts, I would like to present ‘Will-O’-Wisp’: a fire themed exhibition at F2T gallery, presented by Spazio Amanita curated by Caio Twombly and myself. The shows title refers to a folkloric name given to a phenomenon described as an ‘atmospheric ghost light’ seen by travelers over swamps, bogs and marshes.

The term has also been metaphorically defined by an unattainable goal, and something one finds sinister or weird. Fire is mystic, destructive, semi-controllable and fear-inspiring all at once, as his been explored in this exhibition by painters Marco Scarpi, Eva Beresin, Anders Lindseth and me.”

— Adrian Schachter