Bennet Schlesinger muses upon Pier Paolo Pasolini's poetry for his exhibition, 'I Too Am'

Bennet Schlesinger is a Los Angeles-based artist, designer and poet who focuses on crafting furniture and lighting designs. Having lived and worked across various US cities such as San Francisco, New York and now LA, Schlesinger has systemised the processes of making, building and developing furniture via a nuanced and deliberate approach to the craft. With his work, the American designer demonstrates his pursuit of quiet reflection within a seemingly loud world.

It is this sentiment that is resoundingly expressed in Schlesinger's show titled I Too Am, at Galerie Timonier in New York, USA, on view from December 12, 2024 – January 25, 2025. The solo exhibition also marks Schlesinger's debut exposition in the city.

Schlesinger's series of new works displayed at the design gallery grew out of a creative exchange between the American artist and the gallery's owner Stéphane Timonier. With their shared appreciation for poetry, Schlesinger and Timonier delved into the themes of personal and creative spaces. The exhibition, hence, also draws inspiration from erstwhile Italian poet, film director, writer, actor and playwright Pier Paolo Pasolini's eponymous poem, I Too Am, which opens with rhythms of lamentation and hope:

I too am on the way to the Caracalla Baths,
thinking with my old
stupendous privilege of thinking...
(And to think that a god
may still be in me,
bewildered, feeble, child-like,
but his voice so human,
almost like a song).
Ah, to escape this prison of misery!
To free oneself from the anxiety that makes
these ancient nights so stupendous!
Something's there to be shared
by those who know longing and those who don't. [...]

Pasolini, who is known for his poignant political and social reflections via written, oral and cinematic verses, chronicles the details of a private sanctuary in the poem I Too Am. It is within these verses by Pasolini that the picture of an intimate and idyllic space is painted—one where solace can easily be found and wherein there is ample space for creativity to flourish.

[...] Man has humble desires:
First of all, an immaculate shirt.
First of all, good shoes, proper clothing!
And a house in a district where people don't bother you,
an apartment in full sun
with three or four rooms and a balcony,
secluded, but with roses and lemons…[...]

Perusing Pasolini's verses, Schlesinger and Timonier mused upon the description of a sanctum and hence emerged the vision for the design exhibition. The showcase within Galerie Timonier is, hence, envisioned as a reimagined library or writer's room. Encompassing paintings, lighting and furniture designs, all of which reserve spots for quiet reflection while eschewing the practice of dominating the space with their presence, Schlesinger's product designs and Timonier's curation render the gallery space adept for musing upon certain innate, elusive and impalpable aspects of life and existence.

"Pier Paolo Pasolini's poem I Too Am explores the idea of personal and creative spaces as sanctuaries for reflection and expression. The materiality and design of my pieces stem from this sentiment—the interplay of rich, tactile materials and varied contrasting wood species reflects the layered quality of the poem. Each piece was conceived as part of this fantasy of an imagined library or writer's room, an idealised space set aside for reflection and inspired introspection," Schlesinger shares with STIR.

Some materials used to build the furniture include exotic woods such as afromosia, poplar and padauk. Further, Schlesinger blends understated finishes and intricate tile inlays with influences from the Arts and Crafts movement, particularly Roycroft furniture.

[...] I'd build a veranda on the balcony
with dark curtains, of impalpable cloth.
I'd have a light custom-made table
placed in a corner
with a thousand drawers,
one for each manuscript
so as not to violate
the insatiable hierarchies of my inspiration...
Ah, a bit of order, a bit of sweetness
in my work, in my life...
All around I'd put seats and armchairs,
together with a small antique table
and a few old paintings by cruel mannerists,
with golden frames, set against
the bare structure of the veranda.
In the bedroom a simple bed,
flowery bedspreads woven by women
from Calabria or Sardinia.
Here I'd hang the paintings I still love:
next to my Zigaina, a beautiful Morandi,
a Mafai of the forties, a De Pisis,
a small Rosai, a large Guttuso...

Pasolini muses upon tactile and personal accoutrements with which he hopes to decorate his reclusive abode, and Schlesinger brings this hopeful litany to culmination within Galerie Timonier. While developing pieces for the exhibition—based on Pasolini's poem—Schlesinger explored newer materials to develop his craft. The final pieces include bamboo and paper lamps, an upholstered daybed, a coffee table, two stools, a multi-functional bookcase on wheels, a writer's desk and chair and a small bookshelf. While the furniture pieces segment the space into functional pockets, the warmly lit table lamps and wall lamps set and append the serene mood of the show.

Bennet Schlesinger's 'I Too Am' is on view from December 12, 2024 – January 25, 2025, at Galerie Timonier in New York, USA.