For his second solo show in New York, Bolla has created a provocative installation of sculptures that evoke the contents of a prison cell. A rope with a noose hangs from the ceiling above a chair and bars block the entrance to the Terrazzo Gallery. Each of these objects is carefully rendered completely in sparkling Swarovski crystals, a contradiction of form and content that represents the purpose of Bolla’s art. The artist has said about his work: “The symbol that represents these objects is both metaphor and metamorphosis,” explaining how these natural elements rendered by artificial means make everyday objects appear ephemeral.

According to Alberto Fiz, “Bolla invites us to reflect on a world constructed around the beauty and appearance of objects and in his works made of crystals, the jewels hide a deep sense of melancholy.” Born in 1963 in Saluzzo and the son of a painter, Bolla currently lives and works in Torino. A practicing opthamologist and eye surgeon, Bolla lives a kind of double life, practicing medicine by day and working in his studio after hours, creating objects of tremendous beauty and peculiar contradiction.