Ti Amo (fountain)
"Ti Amo" (Italian for "I love you") is a fountain-sculpture. It is inspired by the frog as a Balinese mythological symbol of creativity on one hand, and the traditional social function of public drinking fountains in Italy on the other.
"Ti Amo (fountain)" has a polished aluminum cast at its center. It is made from melted coins from various countries, which the artist has shaped into a specific frog sculpture he encountered near his house and annex studio in Ubud, Bali.
The "Ti Amo (fountain)" runs continuously in a cycle, with its water sourced from several local springs. The coins were collected by Cassani from different sacred fountains in Bali, where they are traditionally thrown into the water by both locals and visitors as offerings to the gods and symbols of wishes.
When Cassani has installed his wish fountain sculpture entitled ‘Ti Amo (fountain)’ at Cittadellarte - Fondazione Pistoletto during his residency in 2022, the artist invited the audience to make a wish following the traditional Italian rite of throwing a coin into the water, to write their wishes on a piece of paper and to further collect them in a mailbox placed next to the fountain. These wishes have become collective commitments and these collective commitments are connected to the micro-communities that revolve around the daily practices of living and coexistence, directed towards the communities that decide whether and how to grant their wishes.
Marco Cassani
Marco Cassani (b. 1981, Milan, Italy) is a conceptual artist, originally trained as a painter at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera in Milan, Italy. Since 2008 he lives and works in Bali, Indonesia, where he maintains his studio and developed an art program called Kayu-Lucie Fontaine. Cassani’s artistic activity is not restricted to a studio practice but also includes endeavors such as curating, producing and facilitating art exhibitions. Through his practice, Cassani calls certain practices and social codes into question, particularly those linked to political and social power, using art as a ‘catalyst’ to create a new understanding towards the construction of value. He has recently exhibited at Honold Fine Art in Bali; Studio Kalahan in Yogyakarta; Lucie Fontaine space in Milan; Lucie Fontaine’s satellite in Tokyo; Galeri Semarang in Semarang; OFCA International in Yogyakarta; NOME gallery in Berlin; ArtStage in Singapore and V-Room in Bali. In 2019 he was invited for an artist residency and as a guest lecturer at Melbourne University in Australia. In 2022, he was invited as artist in residence at Cittadellarte by Fondazione Pistoletto in Biella, Italy.