The Trieste-born artist Marina Apollonio has spent more than 60 years exploring the potential of geometric shapes through paintings, drawings, sculptures, textiles and pieces in motion. Often associated with the Op art and kinetic art movements, Apollonio career got a big boost in 1968 when Peggy Guggenheim saw her work in a group exhibition and proceeded to commission a piece from the artist – so it is fitting that this significant retrospective is being held at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice, where Apollonio spent much of her youth and early adulthood (12 October–3 March 2025). The show demonstrates the artist’s ability to make geometry come alive, to turn even the simplest, one-sided shape – the circle – into an infinite line of enquiry. Highlights include works from the late ’60s and early ’70s, including Gradazioni and Espansioni, which exemplify Apollonio’s abiding interest in concentricity; and Entrare nell’opera (‘Enter the work’, 2024), an installation the artist created specially for this exhibition.
Find out more from the Peggy Guggenheim Collection’s website.
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Gradazione 11. Verde giallo su rosso (1971), Marina Apollonio. Private collection, Verona; © the artist
Progressione (1964), Marina Apollonio. Collection of the artist, Padua. Photo: Sergio Martucci; © the artist
Rilievo 703 (1964–70), Marina Apollonio. Collection of the artist, Padua. Photo: Sergio Martucci; © the artist
Marina Apollonio with one of her artworks in 1965. Photo: © Archivio Marina Apollonio