Gianfranco Baruchello, Binta Diaw, Gina Fischli, Pauline Julier, Oz Oderbolz, Sergio Rojas Chaves, Virginie Sistek, Milva Stutz
The group exhibition “Con lo zucchero in bocca” explores the relationship between resource extraction and sweetness. The project is inspired by the villa that now houses the Istituto Svizzero in Rome, once owned by Carolina Maraini-Sommaruga and Emilio Maraini, a Ticinese pioneer in the beet sugar industry in Italy. Taking sugar and the history of its production as a starting point, the exhibition addresses the imagery associated with the exploitation of resources, exposing how notions of sweetness, romance and desire often contribute to softening narratives of domestication and conquest.
The exhibition presents both new and existing works by artists working with sculpture, painting, installation and film. Through historical accounts, autobiography or fiction, the protagonists of these works grapple with the human-constructed concept of nature, exposing the narrative strategies concealing the exploitation of animals, resources, land, and communities. The works in the exhibition address the narrative motifs and images to which we are accustomed when talking about nature, breaking free from the naive, escapist and conciliatory gaze that often characterises it.
The title of the exhibition evokes the feeling of sugar in one’s mouth, emphasising the embodiment of grand narratives through personal stories. The works on display often co-opt and distort the use of everyday and familiar materials such as furniture and food. Irony often emerges as a critical tool, while various metabolic processes accompany the experience of the exhibition. Spanning from the microscopic to the macroscopic—from something as small as sugar dust to something as vast as a galaxy—the works on display subvert expectations around ecological discourse, offering new and urgent forms of storytelling.
Curated by
Lucrezia Calabrò Visconti
at Istituto Svizzero, Rome
until July 6, 2025
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