Chianciano Terme / London (LabNews Media LLC) – German sculptor Marita Vollborn’s bronze sculpture „ARES“ has been formally donated to the permanent collection of the Chianciano Art Museum following the close of the 9th Chianciano Biennale. In parallel, Vollborn has confirmed her qualification for the London Art Biennale 2027, where she will exhibit „ARES“ on an international stage.
From Temporary Exhibit to Permanent Monument
During the 9th Chianciano Biennale, held from 15 to 29 August 2026, Vollborn’s bronze „ARES“ was shown at the Chianciano Art Museum as a „Selected Artist“ work. Following the close of the Biennale, Vollborn decided to transfer the piece to the museum as a permanent donation, transforming „ARES“ from a temporary exhibit into an enduring public testament in the heart of Tuscany.
The decision is consistent with Vollborn’s longstanding creative principle: „Critical Art Comes Before Commerce.“ Permanently placing the work in a museum collection rather than on the private market is a concrete expression of that stance.
London Art Biennale 2027: Automatic Qualification
According to the official award list published by the Chianciano Art Museum, Vollborn is among ten artists who automatically qualified for the London Art Biennale 2027. The other qualifying artists are Catherine Tomova, Tilmann Krumrey, G. Todorov, Toby Harding, Fadik Erin, Alessandro Brunelli, Brendan Mc Gettigan, Horhat Kund Lehel and Marco Dotti.
It should be noted that Vollborn did not receive the Biennale’s Grand Prize – that went to Italian artist Del Giudice – but rather the institutional qualification pathway to London. In 2027, she will exhibit „ARES“ in London, where the piece, now part of an Italian museum collection, will appear in the United Kingdom as a loan.
Background: The Making of „ARES“
Created in 2015, „ARES“ is named after the Greek god of war and cast in a limited edition of twelve bronzes, measuring approximately 34 × 29 × 30 cm. The work is not a conventional anti-war statement but an examination of deeper mechanisms: the systemic operation of power, the monetisation of conflict, and the normalisation of violence. Vollborn has said: „More than 80 million deaths in two world wars have evidently not been enough to stop the arms race and the incitement to war.“
The sculpture belongs to Vollborn’s ongoing „Sinn und Scherben®“ (Meaning and Shards) project, a cycle of roughly 50 clay and bronze sculptures created between 2010 and 2019 that explores human ambivalence – strength and fragility, power and guilt, hope and loss.
Political Stance and European Positioning
Vollborn has previously stated publicly that, under the current institutional climate, she will not exhibit „ARES“ in the United States. In several interviews she has emphasised that this decision is „not a boycott out of hostility, but a conscious decision of principle“ – she respects the democratic vote of American citizens but cannot accept the erosion of institutional checks and balances or a foreign policy that places military options casually on the table. She has made clear that as long as America’s system of checks and balances does not function reliably and the exhibition space for critical voices is not predictably secure, she will prioritise European and international platforms.
The permanent acquisition of „ARES“ by the Chianciano Art Museum and its qualification for London in 2027 arguably confirm the effectiveness of that strategy: within the European institutional framework Vollborn has chosen, the critical work has not only found exhibition space but has also secured long-term institutional preservation and international reach.
The exact dates of the London Art Biennale 2027 have not yet been announced. When it opens, „ARES“ will continue its dialogue on power, violence and profit – this time as a work already anchored in a permanent Italian museum collection.
ARES by Marita Vollborn.
