Phototaxis

Phototaxis is a project born from the curiosity to explore and shed a ‘new light’ on the colored glass smalti plates produced by the Orsoni furnace and stored in the room known as the Color Library. Through the use of UV light, Paolo Pretolani discovered that some colors react by displaying fascinating fluorescences that are imperceptible to the human eye.

Ultraviolet light reveals certain optical discontinuities through a non-invasive examination of the surfaces. The research focused primarily on enamel plates in the shades classified as “imperial” (yellows, oranges, and reds). The mineral oxides used to color the molten glass settle on the surface during the cooling of the plates and react to UV light, revealing various ranges of fluorescence.

The discovery of a new range of colors, within a room that already contains over 3,500, challenged the perception of vision and classification that had previously appeared orderly and visible.

This gave rise to the first ideas, thanks to a shift in visual perception, just beyond the visible spectrum detectable by the human eye, yet visible to millions of other living beings, including Lepidoptera, a vast order of holometabolous insects encompassing over 158,000 species, commonly known as butterflies and moths.

The patterns in the Phototaxis installation are inspired by details from some of these insects in their various evolutionary stages (larva, pupa, imago), recreated using the technique of artistic mosaic with a selection of Orsoni enamels sensitive to UV light, colors that reveal the presence of chemical mixtures reacting during the furnace fusion process. The work unfolds as a dialogue between matter and light, exploring the codified relationship between the different phases of metamorphosis and the artificial light that unveils the secret of a vision inaccessible to us humans.

PHOTOTAXIS by Paolo Pretolani
May 12 – June 21, 2025
Orsoni Furnace, Cannaregio 1045, Venice

By appointment only, Monday to Friday, by writing to events@orsoni.com

The visit is free of charge. A member of our team will introduce the audience by sharing how the collaboration came about and Paolo Pretolani’s work in partnership with Orsoni.

Paolo Pretolani (Assisi, 1991) lives and works in Venice.

Recent solo exhibitions include: Fortunale, Megadue, Bologna (2024); Vermestella, Ma Project, Perugia (2023); Xenoglossia, Rumi Art Space, Como (2023); Sono proprio io, ma diventato pazzo, Marina Bastianello Gallery, Mestre (2021).

His work has been featured in: Apparizioni: il sogno dell’infinità, Marignana Arte, Venice (2025); Black Bile and Sunflowers, The Address, Brescia (2024); Liberi tutti (Chapter 1), Marignana Arte, Venice; Venice Time Case, Galerie Italienne, Paris (2021); Where we are, Hybrid Tower, Mestre; Stasi Frenetica, GAM, Turin (2020); Together We Stand, Galleria Michela Rizzo, Venice (2020); By The Way: a proposito della giovane pittura italiana, Annarumma Gallery, Naples (2020); Renovation, Galleria Massimodeluca, Mestre (2020); Il Disegno Politico Italiano, AplusA Gallery, Venice (2019); Torre Maluttona & Mercato Babelico, Monitor Gallery, Rome (2018).

In 2019, he was awarded the Casarini Prize for painting under 35 at the ArtVerona Fair in Verona, Italy.