Philip Taaffe

For the first time at the Studio d’Arte Raffaelli, the series of 37 works on paper “Spiral Drawings”, created by Philip Taaffe in his New York studio in 1985, is exhibited to the public. The spiral is the recurring motif: a central point constantly facing outwards. The artist uses this symbol to reflect the desire to preserve the past, but at the same time to look to the future. In fact, in a recent interview, he states that he interprets each image as a long journey: “Moving forward is like a spinning wheel, it goes forward but comes back – there is always a retrospective aspect”. The Spiral Drawings seem to be always ready to change, in a combination between the simplicity and elegance of Zen calligraphy and the spirit of action painting. Conceived and created in a crucial phase of Philip Taaffe’s artistic career, the works are accompanied by a catalog edited by Raymond Foye, published in a limited edition of 300 numbered copies and available in the gallery or by contacting us via email. With the exhibition and book “The Spiral Drawings”, the Raffaelli Art Studio sheds light on a corpus of works never exhibited and published until now, which allow us to look at archaic culture and at the same time tend towards a re-imagination of art.