CALUMNY,
Marian Goodman Gallery, Paris, France
Calumny
2007
Smell sculpture
In 'Calumny' Maciá uses the sense of smell to re-interpret the eponymous lost painting by the fourth century BCE Greek artist Apelles. The painting was described by the ancient Roman philosopher Pliny the Elder, recounted in the thinker Leon Battista Alberti’s master treatise 'On Painting' (1435) and reimagined by the Renaissance painter Sandro Botticelli in
'The Calumny of Apelles' (c. 1495).
The term calumny refers to an invented, and malicious, statement intended to damage reputations. This olfactory sculpture consists of five spheres in constant motion. Each holds a different smell referring to the characters in Pliny's description of Apelles' painting
— truth, envy, hatred, ignorance and calumny.
For Maciá, these terms reflect on the state of British governmental decisions in the Iraq War
when the piece was made.
Presented at:
10th Mercosul Biennial, Porto Alegre, Brazil (2015)
Musée D'Art De Joliette, Quebec, Canada (2008)
Fri-Art, Fribourg, Switzerland (2007)
Sheffield Museum, UK (2007)
Marian Goodman Gallery, Paris, France (2007)
Collaborator:
Smell component created with senior perfumer Ricardo Moya (IFF)