On the occasion of the Venice Film Festival 2019, Davide Groppi presented “NelBlu”, a sensory journey of light and art at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. A lighting installation inspired by the main themes of the surrealist movement, in particular René Magritte’s “The Empire of Light“ (L’Empire des lumières), one of the works on display at the museum. Just like in surrealist cinema, painting and photography, light is also a fundamental element in “NelBlu” which unleashes profound sensations, casting doubt on our typical perceptions. Light and shadow vibrate together, transporting viewers to a dreamlike dimension, that intermediate state between sleep and wakefulness which is the undisputed domain of the unconscious and its most authentic impulses. The museum’s façade and garden are immersed in an evocative atmosphere, paying homage to a colour which has always held a special place in the world of art, from Vasily Kandinsky and René Magritte to Vincent Van Gogh and Lucio Fontana; from Pablo Picasso’s melancholy “blue period” to the “most perfect expression of blue” made famous by Yves Klein. “NelBlu” is a coherent continuation of Davide Groppi’s thirty-year journey in the lighting field, which has always stood out for its strong links with modern and contemporary art, particularly as regards the relationship between art and lighting. “Illuminating art is a great responsibility. Light is like a colour on the artist’s palette, or a chisel blow by a sculptor. It must be delicate and respectful, light and sartorial” Davide Groppi