EMERGING + EMERGING REFLECTIONS | Revisiting Canova plaster sculptures

In 1994, Morucchio photographed the plaster models of Canova at the Gipsoteca di Possagno, near Venice, drawn by their beauty and the black dot grids that appeared on the skin as embedded reference points. These grids, originally used by Canova to control the transition of his work from plaster to Carrara marble, became a focal point for Morucchio’s exploration of an idealized beauty. The project, titled Emerging, evolved from these black-and-white photographs of Canova's plaster busts. Morucchio dissected and isolated the busts, focusing on them as symbols of emotion and vitality. Through digital manipulation, he transformed the images into various shades of red, a color loaded with symbolism—pain, passion, alarm, and transgression. This use of color, inspired by Kandinsky's belief in its power to influence the soul, metaphorically exposes the underlying intensity and sensuality within these robust torsos.