“The creation of the HistoryNow series has been at once a meditative and cathartic interaction with the
turbulent world in which we live now. It is a mining of the liminal zone we all inhabit, between the viscerally real and the
abstractedly virtual which is becoming the present state of existence. By showing the works in the National Archaeological
Museum, I am reminded that however new our issues feel, many are manifestations of issues that humans have faced since the
beginnings of art and indeed the beginnings of human interaction. I couldn't think of a better place to show them in Venice
than at the National Archaeological Museum."
Marc Quinn
Marc Quinn - HistoryNow
On View during La Biennale di Venezia - Marc Quinn presents HistoryNow at the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Venezia, in Piazza San Marco - until October 23 - curated by - Aindrea Emeline and Francesca Pini - marking a
new material chapter in his decade-long History Paintings project. Forty-eight new paintings and an accompanying
Stele sculpture are presented in dialogue with the museum’s own collection from classical antiquity, inviting
reflections on society past and present. Quinn’s works, which begin their life as iPhone screenshots, replicate the digital portals through which humans
absorb, consume, and share news, a phenomenon markedly accelerated by the events of the last two years.
Through screens, society witnesses world-shifting cultural events, incidents of human tragedy, and natural
disasters, alongside moments of pop cultural levity in one endlessly refreshing stream.
HistoryNow - #FreeBritney to get if off my heart - Instagram - 2021
HistoryNow replicates a scrolling journey through digital feeds, the content of which oscillates between
celebrity news and global current affairs. Unveiled in a space usually reserved for reflections on the past,
connections are uncovered between the series and the museum’s classical sculptures, offering
commentary on the method and momentum with which news and stories have been communicated across
history. In this exhibition Quinn returns to themes explored throughout his career, posing questions concerning
societal ideals and the human condition.
HistoryNow - Well I don't think science knows actually - Instagram - 2020
HistoryNow - #FridaySept11 - The New York Times - 2020
Painted through several government lockdowns in the UK, the preparatory process of each artwork became a
meditative act for Quinn; the daily ritual of painting reflected the continuous rhythm of scrolling through the
internet. While the method, materials and results of Quinn’s painting process vary, the screenshot as primer
remains a constant, evoking the ubiquity and urgency of news and technology in our lives.
HistoryNow - Beyonce - US Weekly - 2020
HistoryNow - Bonnie and Clyde - St. Louis Public Radio - 2020
HistoryNow - Colin Kaepernick - 2020
HistoryNow - Dazed 100 - Dazed Digital - 2020
HistoryNow - Liver King - Instagram - 2022
HistoryNow - Trans people belong - The New York Times - 2021
HistoryNow - Kim at the Met Ball - 2022
Rather than a chronological presentation, the paintings are grouped in thematic conversation with the classical
collection exhibited in each room. Quinn explores historic yet timely tropes such as beauty ideals, power,
conflict and heroism, among other topics. The final room of the exhibition houses a multimedia experience
offering additional context for the painting series, including interviews with individuals connected to the imagery
or content of the paintings. Through these paintings and subsequent interviews, Quinn seeks to reflect on these
viral and often incomplete stories to bring viewers back to the heart of the subject matter, unpacking our
compulsion toward instant consumption and reaction.
HistoryNow - Shaman Triptych - BBC News - 2021
HistoryNow - The year that changed the Internet - The Atlantic - 2022
Hung from the ceiling of the museum's corridors, a pathway of paintings floats overhead like an internet "cloud", a data-nebula that completely surrounds us. Quinn evokes in physical space the familiar sensation of endlessly scrolling through automatically updating news and social media feed: that hourly tumble through a rabbit hole of unrelated stories and miscellaneous information. Integrated into the museum's architecture, the display also evokes the tradition of Italian fresco and Venetian ceiling painting, a mural technique employed since antiquity to depict narrative scenes and mythological, religious, or historical episodes on the ceilings of rooms.
HistoryNow - LiveStream