A Cheerful Person The rural ‘Church of San Rocco’ stands in the midst of the vineyards of Brachetto d’Acqui. It was built in the 18th century in rustic Baroque style. Today it is a delicate presence in the landscape with its small polylobate rose window at the centre of the façade. The great charm of this location and the vantage point of those arriving from a distance prompted Chinese artist Zhang Enli (Jilin, 1965) to revitalise the chapel with one of his works of abstract gestural painting. Borrowing colours from the surrounding natural setting Enli created a sort of “pareidolia” (human ability to see shapes or make pictures out of randomness) transforming the veneer of the church into a smiling face, delicately blurring the architectural features of with quick brushstrokes to form a unified whole. The project began during the pandemic in a period of lockdown. Enli envisaged a work of religious architecture set free amidst the vineyards as a happy presence capable of bringing a smile to those who encounter it. ‘A Cheerful Person’ is a tribute and response to Sol Lewitt and David Tremlett’s project in the 'Barolo Chapel’ (1999) one that transformed geometric colour fields into an explosion of marks - paying homage to the utterly Italian tradition of “gribouillage” (scribbling) - to Cy Twombly and to the creativity of childhood. #neonurchin #neonurchinblog #dedicatedtothethingswelove #suzyurchin #ollyurchin #art #music #photography #fashion #film #design #words #pictures #love #artmappingpiemonte #fondazionecompagniadesanpaolo #fondazionetorinomusei #artissima #sollewitt #davidtremlett #gribouillage #abstractgesturalpainting #pareidolia #churchofsanrocco #italy #acheerfulperson #zhangenli (at Piemonte, Italy) https://www.instagram.com/p/CjAPjgvMJIg/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=
