Continuing the research started during her residency at NTU CCA Singapore in 2018, Claudia Losi reflects on Being There. Oltre il giardino (which literally translates from Italian as Being There. Beyond the garden) in the context of her practice. Being There. Oltre il giardino is a long-term project that revolves around the concept of nature and the relationship between real and imagined places. At the core of the artist’s endeavours is the deceivingly simple question: “What is your idea of a natural place?”. Guided by this query, the artist is intent on exploring the complex relation between humans and nature adopting a relational and processual perspective. Through workshops and participatory formats, Losi is in the process of soliciting responses from a wide range of individuals. The contributions she has gathered so far show how our subjective understanding of “the natural” is invariably influenced by culture, age, language, geography, memory, and imagination. This growing collection of written and visual contributions will be brought together in an installation, an artist’s book, and a website.
The artistic practice of Claudia Losi (b. 1971, Italy) explores social interactions, the entanglements of human sensibilities, and the complexities of natural phenomena through scientific, ethnographic, and anthropological methodologies. Her works span participatory projects, performances as well as drawings, photography, and sculpture. Recent solo presentations include As Hands Remember, Monica De Cardenas, Switzerland, Claudia Losi. Ossi. Museum of Modern Art of Bologna, Italy (both 2020); Being There, IKON Gallery, Birmingham, United Kingdom (2019); How do I imagine being there?, Collezione Maramotti, Reggio Emilia, Italy (2016) and in numerous international group shows including the Hangzhou Triennial of Fiber Art, China (2016); MAGASIN, Grenoble, France (2010); Sharjah Biennale 8, United Arab Emirates (2007). She was Artist-in-Residence at NTU CCA Singapore in 2018.
NTU CCA Singapore is an official cultural partner of Being There. Oltre il giardino, recipient of Italian Council 9, a grant of the Directorate-General for Contemporary Creativity (Italy).
Suggested readings:
Eduardo Kohn, How Forests Think. Toward an Anthropology beyond the Human, University of California, 2013
Marcia Bjornerud, Timefulness: How Thinking like a Geologist Can Help Save the World, Princeton University Press, 2018
Donna Haraway, Staying with the Trouble-Making Kin in the Chthulucene, University of Chicago, 2016
Project partners:
Direzione Regionale Musei delle Marche, Italy
Rocca Roveresca of Senigallia, Senigallia (AN), Italy
CIMeC – Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, Rovereto, Italy
Collezione Maramotti, Reggio Emilia, Italy
Accademia di Belle Arti, Urbino, Italy
NTU Centre for Contemporary Art, Singapore
Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, Jerusalem
Image: Claudia Losi, Butterflies, 2018, photograph. Courtesy the artist.
