La Mela Reintegrata — ECOLOGY

The symbol of the apple crosses the entire history we have behind us, starting from the bite, which is the detachment of mankind from nature and the origin of the artificial world that has grown up to the totalizing size of today. La Mela Reintegrata is the entry into a new era in which the artificial world and the natural world are reunited producing a new planetary balance.

—Michelangelo Pistoletto

Much of Pistoletto’s current work concerns the development of contemporary society, which has led to the progressive detachment of the artificial sphere from the natural one. In detaching ourselves from nature, we have caused enormous damage to the planet. The symbol of the apple embodies the harmonious relationship of these two opposite poles. The apple represents nature, while the bite, on the other hand, represents artifice.

Using a prevalent symbol found in Italian art, the apple of Eve in the Garden of Eden, the apple is here stitched back together—symbolically mending our environmental “sin.” In addition, we see this symbol in a contemporary context as the Apple computer logo, which symbolizes how technology can fully replace the natural world. The bite mending thus represents the reunification of these two elements, and the healing of the relationship between humanity and nature.

La Mela Reintegrata has been created several times in different forms, often as part of Third Paradise activities. Notably, a three-dimensional version was donated to the city of Milan, and was built and installed in the Piazza Duomo in 2016. It has also been displayed in the Baths of Caracalla in the Roman Forum.

MICHELANGELO PISTOLETTO
La mela reintegrata
2020
Wood, wool, steel, and acrylic
74 13/16 x 90 9/16 x 1 3/16 inches (190 x 230 x 3 cm)