L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, AUGUST 19, 2021 www.italoamericano.org 14 L'Italo-Americano T he famed marble quarries of Car- rara are practi- c a l l y s a c r e d g r o u n d . T h e gleaming white surface of the exposed marble graces the crests of the Apuan Alps, o f t e n m i s t a k e n b y t h e unknowing for snow. Gar- gantuan chunks cut from the mountainside for almost two thousand years now create blocked terraces resembling amphitheaters for giants, their lines precise and mea- sured. Looking more like heavenly mirages on high, the scattered quarries reflect shimmery white to the Tus- can valley below. To think of all the famed feet who've walked across these exposed mountainsides, each search- ing for the perfect block of marble, is inspiring. It's said Michelangelo would spend weeks living amongst the marble, searching and wait- ing for just the right piece of stone to whisper, "I am your canvas!" Valued for its purity and q u a l i t y , t h e m a r b l e o f Carrara is synonymous with I t a l i a n p a s s i o n , a r t i s t r y , d e s i g n , a n d m e t i c u l o u s a t t e n t i o n t o d e t a i l – a l l attributes that make Made in Italy mean something. Much like Italian wheat is transformed into the finest p a s t a , o r l o v i n g l y t e n d e d grapes are coaxed into mem- o r a b l e w i n e , t h i s m a r b l e hoisted from the belly of the A p u a n A l p s h a s b e e n t h e embryo for fine sculptures since the days of the Roman E m p i r e . F a t t o a m a n o – made by hand – is what the g r a n d e s t w o r k o f a r t a n d Nonna's Sunday dinner are all about, right? While true, and definitely what makes the Italian way the envy of the world, there's some artistic trailblazing going on in Carrara. Let me introduce you to some of the newest sculptors in Italy – the whirring, spinning robot- ics of Italy's innovative tech- nological company known as Robotor. What, oh what, would Michelangelo say? Simplified, these robots a r e l i k e 3 - D p r i n t e r s i n reverse, their precision dia- m o n d t i p p e d a p p e n d a g e extracting masterpieces from existing material. Robotor co-founder (and a veteran of the marble and sculpture b u s i n e s s ) G i a c o m o Massari finds humor in the thought that many of us want t o c l i n g t o t h e i d e a l i z e d image of a half-mad genius flinging marble dust into the air as he chips a creation into being. Many of the artists utilizing Massari's robots would love us to continue to hang on to that notion, as well, choosing not to disclose t h e i r i d e n t i t i e s p u b l i c l y . Afterall, if "artists" such as robots ABB2 or Quantek2 can precisely produce the fruition of an artist's imagi- nation, why spoil the narra- tive? Michele Monfroni, a s c u l p t o r s i n c e a g e 7 a n d Carrara native, passionately o f f e r s h i s t a k e o n h o w M i c h e l a n g e l o w o u l d f e e l about the idea of robots as artists: "…he would tear out h i s h a i r , " h e s t a t e d i n a r e c e n t N e w Y o r k T i m e s i n t e r v i e w . A n d y e t , i s i t wrong to rail against some- thing as dispassionate as an innate machine replacing the warmth of the human touch, especially when it's related to t h e r o m a n c e o f a r t ? Traditionalists such as Mr. M o n f r o n i m a y n e v e r approve. Fearing Robotor's construct will lead to demise of Italy's artistic reputation, Monfroni maintains that a work of art crafted by hand and heart is the only accept- able approach. "Robots are business, sculpture is pas- sion. If you use a robot, you also become a machine your- self," Monfroni pleads. Ouch. It's a tough argument for anyone with a sentimental streak, for sure. T e c h - w i z a r d M i c h e l e B a s a l d e l l a i s t h e O z t o Robotor's Emerald City of robots. Basaldella argues that employing help for the brunt of the work required to create a new sculpture is nothing new. In fact, he asserts that 9 0 p e r c e n t o f t h e Renaissance masters' initial toil was done by unrecog- nized apprentices. His are merely made of metal…and a lot of software. Basaldella also assures the doubter that the robots are designed with "artistic sensitivity" – howev- er that translates from flesh and blood over to steel and wires. While it's hard to grant h u m a n q u a l i t i e s s u c h a s emotion or sensitivity to a robotic that looks like a giant free-standing dentist's drill, Robotor's creators insist they have come close, at least with the end product. Touting a fusion of tradition and tech- nology, the main idea put f o r t h s e e m s t o b e t h a t infrared scanning and point clouds can now scratch out a n i d e n t i c a l c o p y o f M i c h e l a n g e l o ' s P i e t à i n monumentally fast time. As Massari reminds the skepti- cal, Canova's Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss took five years to coax out of a chunk of Carrara marble. Want a replica for next month's pool party? Robotor can deliver in a mere eleven days and six hours from start to finish, d i m e n s i o n s a n d n u a n c e s cloned precisely from the original and guaranteed to inspire fervent ooooo's and ahhhh's from its admirers. Furthering his argument, Massari points out that the m a n u a l l a b o r i n v o l v e d i n hand carving has fallen out of favor with today's younger artisans. And none want the perils that come with breath- ing in marble dust day after day. The only way to survive is to carve out new approach- es – both literally and figura- tively. Massari's robots are doing precisely that. Robotor's bots were ini- tially sourced outside the company, but as demand and i n c r e a s i n g l y c h a l l e n g i n g commissions came in, the h o m e m a d e r e c i p e o f i n - h o u s e p r o g r a m m i n g a n d German machinery evolved i n t o t h e c r e a t i o n o f t h e mechanized artisans now whirring away in Robotor's workshops. The company markets its robots and soft- ware worldwide, alluding that a 3-D creation of any size isn't really that hard to achieve: "Easy to use – with- out knowledge of program- m i n g l a n g u a g e s " a n d "Requires only simple train- ing of staff" sure make it sound easy enough. I s t h e r e a n y m i d d l e ground in this battle of old vs. new, an acceptance of innovation tempered with the traditions of the past? Art h i s t o r i a n M a r c o C i a m p o l i n i s h a r e d h i s thoughts with the New York Times recently, pondering that the use of robots really isn't divorcing the past. He cites the historical delegation of the grunt work to under- lings while the final delicate touches were applied by the m a s t e r … " O n l y a h u m a n k n o w s w h e n t o s t o p , " Ciampolini quips. F o r t u n a t e l y , t h e s a m e point of view is shared by Massari and his cohorts at R o b o t o r . W h e t h e r a n abstract cubist creation com- missioned from France or a last-minute order of replicas of Michelangelo's Emerging Slaves, the skill and eye -- and emotion -- of a living, breathing artist finalizes the c u r v e s a n d l i n e s o f e a c h piece, smoothing and tem- p e r i n g w i t h a f e a t h e r e d touch. Fatto a mano is the kiss of completion. Interestingly so, Carrara was the hotseat of 19 th cen- tury anarchy, her marble workers a beehive of radical thinking and ideas. Frame it as anarchy continued, or per- haps just a sign of the tech- nological times, I do feel Mr. B u o n a r r o t i w o u l d b e amused. PAULA REYNOLDS NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS One of the marble carving robots at work (Copyrighted work available under Creative Commons license. Author: Reiner Flassig. License: Public Domain) Move Over, Michelangelo – Is technology replacing artistic genius?

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