Site-specific art and 3D: an example of spatial analysis and reconstruction

Site-specific art is a concept that goes back to the beginning of human race: the works of art were often created by artists taking into account not only their shape and appearance, but also the context in which they would be put. For this reason, moving the artifacts from its original placement (or the changes which happen around it) tend to decrease its impact, and possibly weaken its potentials. Site-specific art is a very powerful concept also for contemporary artists. This paper focuses on the analysis of L.O.V.E., a sculpture from the controversial artist Maurizio Cattelan. Cattelan donated the sculpture to Milano, under the condition that it should not be moved from its original place (in front of Milano Stock Exchange). The aim of the paper is to use 3D reconstruction techniques to show and analyse the monument, stressing its relation with the context around it. A multi-view stereo matching campaign was perfomed to have an accurate reconstruction of the context, then the photos provided by the community were integrated in the reconstruction to show the "point of view" of the people. These data provide interesting indications about the aims of the authors, and they provide additional material for the interpretation of the work of art