In the exhibition Jangala, the term “jungle” is used as a sociological and geographical reference.

The “here” and “now,” informed by the knowledge of “yesterday” or “elsewhere,” shape a visual environment that recognizes the concept of identity and otherness as a central issue for every community. Within the exhibition space, a new world is hatched, where different species of flora and fauna coexist. Their coexistence is driven and defined by the ferocity and extremes of power (survival of the fittest).

A contemporary landscape of processed mineral materials is etched into and by time as images drawn from every aspect of life. Painted surfaces and sculptural forms depict jungle creatures and the vegetation of wild nature, creating a new visual language made from asphalt membranes, gunpowder, porcelain, and bronze. Human movement marks space, forming a contemporary collection of stories with an abstract approach, composing a semiological environment from elements of myth, archetypes, symbols, and the imaginary.

The title Jangala defines the word “Jungle,” which in Sanskrit (ancient Indian language) means uncultivated land or otherwise barren land. The term is often used to refer to the vegetation in forests or tropical growth that overtakes abandoned areas. The exhibition emphasizes the trace of an ancient dialect, describing today’s era as an immense accumulation of spectacles.

Text by Eleanna Balesi