It is a movement founded in 1993 by Alex Angi, Renzo Nucara, Sweetlove, Marco Veronese, and Kicco. From the beginning, the group has promoted art with a “strong ecological commitment without catastrophic tones, using the practice of recycling,” distancing itself from past art. Members exhibit installations worldwide, mostly featuring animal subjects made from recyclable plastic, placed in public places such as streets, squares, and cities, as well as in various museum exhibitions.
Disproportionate, enormous, and colorful plastic sculptures depicting animals. The choice of animal subjects is connected to nature and respect for it. Each Cracking Art installation is filled with hidden messages.
“We are men of the present, and we want our work to interpret contemporary issues.” This is point number 4 of the Cracking Art manifesto.
It all starts with catalytic cracking, which is what transforms organic matter into synthetic, namely, oil into plastic. In Cracking Art, plastic becomes the main material with which artists sculpt animals and send them around the world to peacefully “invade” it.
Choosing such a controversial material like plastic has led the artists to convey a message of attention to the use and recovery of a potentially harmful product if not reused correctly. In fact, the same works used in installations, once finished, are recycled to produce other works. A life that renews and regenerates.
All of this leads to great attention to fundamental issues such as reuse and sustainability, a commitment for the artists that is both ecological and social.
“Station Invasion,” installation at Napoli Centrale station.
WHO IS RENZO NUCARA?
He is a “Cracking artist,” a “Crypto artist,” and “the Monky.” He is an artist who has been showcasing his virtual works on SuperRare, one of the most coveted Crypto art platforms, since 2018.
According to Nucara, Crypto art has changed the artist-public relationship. Success is now measured by social media interactions and the corresponding number of followers.
Nucara believes that NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) are a reality that materializes the imagined future. He uses them to add a narrative to a specific emotion, revealing a charm entirely different from that elicited by a physical artwork. In his works, he tends to maintain a connection between the real and the virtual, rather than replacing one with the other.
In his early NFTs, the subjects are animals that come to life in virtual reality, reliving the same scene infinitely. On one hand, it creates a mesmerizing effect, and on the other, it addresses the challenges of coexistence with the anthropization of the planet and the dialectical relationship between the natural and the artificial – fundamental themes in Cracking Art’s philosophy, along with eco-sustainability. In his subsequent works, Monky takes the stage (starting with the first piece “Time Machine Infinite Monkey”), an ironic alter ego that becomes the protagonist of his NFTs.
Renzo Nucara, Moky BLA BLA BLA
SOS WORLD or SOS MAN?
Nucara has participated in numerous projects related to the theme of eco-sustainability and “saving the planet,” but he is convinced that what needs to be saved is not the planet but rather humanity, as we are the weak link in the chain and it is we who will bear the consequences of our ignorance.
Regarding this issue, Cracking Art has provided and continues to provide its contribution both culturally and practically.
Time Machine – Nucara
