It was raining heavily that night in 1989 when I left the Biennale building, I saw a man at the entrance with a raincoat and hood asking the doorman, for a taxi. I asked if I could help.
I saw he had a Biennale badge, he told me he wanted to go to his hotel, I lived on the same street as the hotel and offer him a ride.
He gets into the car silently and remains that way until the hotel.
He thanks me for the ride, I tell him my name, and he said I am Frank Stella…how would be possible if he wasn’t coming, only his works would be exhibited…that was Stella, he liked anonymity, he went to see the installation without anyone knowing.
My legs, they were trembling, l asked if we could talk a little, I was passionate about his works, I wanted to meet the artist who created them, he very generously accepts, and we spend hours talking.
I said, if one day, l will have a gallery, would you hold an exhibition? He gave me a paper with his phone numbers and said:
If you ever have one, call me.
18 years passed, I opened a small gallery in Basel, I got up the courage and called him, he answered, and I said my name is Rita Ficher, he interrupts me… and said: it was raining a lot that night. My God, he remembered.
We arranged to meet in Munich he would have an exhibition at the Haus der Kunst, I went, we met at a dinner with a few people, I told him, now I have the gallery, but it is a small one, can we have an exhibition?
I went to NY, we had only four months to organize everything.
He said:
Yes, Rita, we will do!!
It was the best and greatest experience of my life.
The works arriving, the incredulous Looks when I met someone from the press or collectors curious to know if he would really come, nobody believe, they doubted …and the day arrived, the same day as the opening of the art Basel!
I was not only by the artist, but also enchanted by such a generous human being, he gave me the works on consignment, helped me with the catalogue, transport and assured me of his presence at the opening despite having a retrospective at the Metropolitan Museum in NY on the same date.
The entrance to the gallery, the stairs and even the sidewalks were full of curious people. And he was there!
When Frank came into the gallery, I could see at the same time in the faces of the people the expression of surprise, incredulity…journalists ran to meet him, people asked for his autograph, they wanted to talk to him, curators, director of museum, as if to check if it was true.
The journalist takes his microphone, and the first question comes:
Mr. Stella, how come you have a retrospective at the Metropolitan Museum, and now in this small, unknown gallery in Basel?
He looks at me sideways and responds:
Because I go where there is dedication and passion, and come to think of it, here it is just as beautiful, if not more beautiful, than at the Metropolitan Museum!
This is Frank Stella.
Thanks a lot for making my dream come true!
Thanks, Maria Vital, Claudia Knapp, my daughters, Mr. Beyeler, BAZ, Cony, Albert, Peter Ingold, my dear professor Joachim Verspohl and all, who helped me to realize this exhibition!
No Comments