The Third Paradise
Michelangelo Pistoletto, ArtistRome, Italy
Michelangelo Pistoletto began his work as an artist in the ‘50s. In 2003, Pistoletto wrote the manifesto of The Third Paradise [Il Terzo Paradiso] and drew its iconic symbol, a reconfiguration of the mathematical sign for infinity, in the sand. Between the two contiguous circles, which signify the two opposite poles of nature and artifice, he inserted a third, central circle to represent the generative womb of a new humanity, an ideal that subsumes the polarities of nature and artifice and negates their destructive conflict in society today.
Interview
I started my work as an artist in the ‘50s searching for my identity. To help realise my identity, I used the self portrait, a typical artistic form. To see my image in front of myself I needed a mirror, and the mirror became the base of all my work from then onwards. The mirror transforms the canvas, the canvas was transformed in the mirror, and the mirror opens the space and time in front of me, of myself. And for the first time, instead of the second or third dimension that are painting or sculpture, I came to the fourth dimension, the dimension of Space and Time. This is how I introduced Space into my Art.
My approach to the Space enterprise began at a conference on the theme, “The Earth and its Ruin”, in 2016. People were talking about the disaster on Earth, but I proposed a “Third Paradise” as a possibility to connect between nature on Earth and the artificial life that we bring onto the planet in order to destroy it. In my vision, the symbol of the Third Paradise represents a new dimension of life based on proportion and harmony, between two opposites, Nature and Artifice.
The Italian ASI, in cooperation with NASA and ESA, organised a mission that was called VITA – Vitality Innovation Technology Ability. The astronaut Paolo Nespoli took the Third Paradise idea on a mission around the world on the International Space Station, taking photos and sending them back to Earth. Through an app called Space3, we connected socially active artists and people on Earth were able to respond to the 17 UN Objectives of sustainability.
It’s important to realise the meaning of the Third Paradise. It is a symbol of the connection between Nature and Artifice. The two words sit in the two outer circles of the three circles of the sign.
The central circle is the connection between the two external elements which produces a new element that did not exist before. This is the way of creation. At the same time, it expresses balance, harmony, and peace. In the symbol of the Third Paradise, there is one sign, the symbol of freedom, that comes from Art, and another that represents our collective responsibility: Art and Technology, Art and Science. In between, this connection creates a new dimension, the dimension of Balance and Equilibrium. There is no freedom without responsibility, and no responsibility without freedom: Art and Science together.
![Michelangelo Pistoletto began his work as an artist in the ‘50s. In 2003, Pistoletto wrote the manifesto of The Third Paradise [Il Terzo Paradiso] and drew its iconic symbol, a reconfiguration of the mathematical sign for infinity, in the sand. Between the two contiguous circles, which signify the two opposite poles of nature and artifice, he inserted a third, central circle to represent the generative womb of a new humanity, an ideal that subsumes the polarities of nature and artifice and negates their destructive conflict in society today.](https://www.space4ourplanet.org/wp-content/webp-express/webp-images/uploads/2021/12/MP_TP_specchio.jpg.webp)
I think the younger generation should renew the world, through the connection between Art and Science, between Nature and Artifice, and grow more and more creative in order to re-found our human society.
Promote just, peaceful and inclusive societies
Check out more
