“Ballad of Women. Emancipation, self-determination, violence. An interactive narration of the female universe” is the title of the exhibition, which by subtitle refers to a poem by Edoardo Sanguineti: “Because woman is not heaven, she is earth, flesh of the earth who does not want war”.
The exhibition is proposed, through an interactive experience, as a place for reflection on the issue of women's rights. The inspiring motif is represented by three paintings from the private collection of MPS Foundation, depicting three historical personalities: Cleopatra (Marco Pino, XNUMXth century), Mary Magdalene (Rutilio Manetti XNUMXth century) and Lucia of Syracuse (Master of Observance, XNUMXth century), paintings that will be exhibited in a room dedicated to them.
Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt, last direct descendant of Alexander the Great. Opposed and courted by the Roman Empire for her position and her power, but also known for her seduction skills and her acute intelligence, Cleopatra embodies the theme of emancipation in the narrative.
Maria maddalena who was discredited at the beginning of Christianity, years in which facts and events that concerned her were misrepresented to prevent her from being remembered as an honest person and from being recognized as a symbol of knowledge in the Gospels, embodies the theme of self-determination.
Lucy of Syracuse (Santa Lucia), denounced to the Roman generals and persecuted for her religious beliefs and for revenge, for having rejected a suitor, she was deprived of her will and dignity and then sentenced to an excruciating and denigrating death. She embodies violence and torture.
The Foundation therefore once again through its structure and the company Vergine Progetti Culturali (which has as its objective the organization and promotion of cultural events), puts itself at the service of culture and the city making use of excellent partners such as the University of Siena, the Interactive Institute Umeå and the Eindhoven Technical University. With the University of Siena, the MPS Foundation is establishing a collaboration on several fronts, according to a model that will also be followed with other institutions and entities in the area. Not only contributions, but synergies in terms of knowledge, professionalism, ability to get together.
In the installation the representations of these three paintings float in space. Mounted on rotating pivots, these fragments resist the viewer's attempts to capture them and reassemble them into a whole. Thus a complete vision of the paintings is possible only in certain moments and from specific points of view in the room. Following a particular logic of interaction, each of the fragments can sometimes show part of the original painting, other times display contents that come from groups that discuss the themes addressed in the exhibition on the internet. Some of these elements rotate and their movement is influenced by the physical presence of observers and by the virtual presence of online discussion groups on these issues. A software continuously monitors the news concerning the themes of violence, emancipation and self-determination and how these are addressed through posts and online discussions. The number of discussions generated on the internet is an input for the installation and determines its movement and information content. A stream of sound allows the observer to pick up fragments of a whispered narration which disappears immediately after being heard. The narrative contents are represented by a cycle of poems which accompany the whole experience and which will constitute its soundtrack.
The exhibition:
Monte dei Paschi di Siena Foundation
Palazzo Sansedoni, Banchi di Sotto 34, Siena
Opening time:
19-21 Giugno h10:00-19:00
24-28 Giugno h10:00-19:00
29-30 Giugno h15:00-17:30
01-02 Luglio h10:00-13:00
