ROBERT PAN | Σταλακτίτης | STALATTITE, LA VITA NELLA MATERIA

The Greek word σταλακτίτης , stalactite, derives from the verb σταλάζω , meaning to drip, a slow and continuous precipitation that over time gives shape to this extraordinarily fascinating element with atypical conformations, which cannot be ascribed to a single aesthetic typology. Material and stratification are also protagonists in Robert Pan's works, which involve a careful and artificial analytical operation, which first consists of constantly dripping layers of pigments and resins onto mesh supports, alternating the superimposition of materials with corrosion, smoothing and polishing.

Matter therefore becomes an essential condition, however, while in the formation of stalactites the shaping element is water, in Robert Pan's works, they are: pigment, resin and fire, which becomes the forging principle.
A slow and continuous work of addition and subtraction, which harmonizes it with the sequences and rhythms of Eastern philosophies: a sort of mantra, repeated over months, years, allowing the color and resin to take shape, solidify, and then be sanded, alternating between greater and lesser degrees of smoothness, so that in certain very specific points, the material and symbolic elements emerge "from the abyss" and rise to the surface. Thus appears a universe of colors, shapes, microorganisms, microcosms of infinite hues, allowing us to travel with our eyes, but also with our imagination, leading us to other worlds, perhaps sidereal, light-years away, or closer, present within each of us, deep within our dream visions or our eyes, and which Robert Pan manages to bring to the surface.