Sited on over 200 acres of vineyards, gardens, and natural landscape in the Napa Valley, di Rosa is the shared vision of prolific art collectors Rene and Veronica di Rosa. Featuring 2,000 works of art by more than 800 artists, their world-class collection, exhibited in three buildings as well as on the surrounding landscape, is considered the most significant holding of Bay Area art in the world.
By placing artwork in the context of his sprawling Carneros Valley estate, Rene di Rosa created an outdoor space that invites a broader audience to access the visions of contemporary artists such as Robert Arneson, Mark Di Suvero, and Wayne Thibauld. Using the landscape as an exhibition space challenges our perceptions about how we imagine we should think about a piece of art. For example, it questions common beliefs about nature’s harmonizing effects. Consider di Rosa’s own creation, Lynched Volkswagon. We typically think of automobiles and trees as being in conflict—we’ve all seen accidents to support that impression. Di Rosa chose to hang his car from a large tree branch using a rope. The auto dangles freely but is supported by the tree. I picture the two holding a dialogue in this state of tension, studying each other and questioning whether they could continue to share the same space in this quickly evolving world. It’s a powerful image and fun to view.
The work that most exemplifies for me the preserve’s ability to celebrate the integration of art and nature is Robert Hudson’s sculpture Running Through the Woods, of 1975. The theme showcases di Rosa’s vision of the wilderness as the ideal canvas for his collection. A standing buck steadied on a grid-like structure confirms the delicate balance—and struggle—between humans, the wilderness, and the sacred elements supporting their union. Di Rosa represents the realization of a dream to preserve all of those things, catalyzed by its founder’s conversations in the ‘60s with talented young members of the art faculty at UC Davis (where he studied viticulture) who were then creating massive shifts in the idea of modern conceptual art.
Photo by Steven Rothfield, courtesy of di Rosa. Artworks in foreground by Robert Arneson (left) and Viola Frey (right).
For more information: http://www.dirosaart.org/
Posted by Robert Molossi in Arts and Culture on