If I was going to invite Wes Anderson and Steve Zissou out for an afternoon in Rome, I would absolutely bring them here! This “Tiffany blue” dipped installation, that transformed the Ex Elettrofonica gallery into a strange boat-like space last fall, is the work of London based artist Davide D’Elia. “Antivegetativa” {the name in Italian of anti-fouling paint often used on old ships}, is composed of a LOT of that gorgeous blue paint, a chair, a buoy and nineteen paintings from old cellars, flea markets, antique shops and junkyards of Rome. Here is an abbreviated statement about this installation:

“Anti-fouling paint of the thick variety is normally applied as a coating for the hulls of old ships and is particular in that it seals out plant and animal organisms to the point of eliminating every possible form of life. The result is an acidic and unreal space, immersed in the abysses of the a material that erases everything, including space, time and life. From the process of immersion of the objects in the paint stems a reflection on a stretch of common history, that of things, and this gives rise to another, much deeper one, on what remains beyond the end of material. Through the process of cancellation of natural processes, Antivegetativa is an experiment in halting nature’s physicality, as well as the passing of time.”  If you’d like to read the entire artist’s statement, pop over to Davide’s site.

{via designboom}