Loredana Longo – Carpet #18

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The contemporary art project "Vetrina" inaugurates the second series of presentations this February. Having previously explored the theme of nature through the site-specific works of the first nine invited artists, the focus now shifts to the theme of activism. This cycle will involve women artists who, through their artistic practice, have always provided space for reflection on the contemporary world.

In 2024, the Vino Vero "Vetrina" will exclusively host diversely active and provocative women artists. Launching this new cycle is Loredana Longo (Catania, 1967), a multifaceted artist who uses a variety of techniques and materials to realise her work, which mainly consist of site-specific installations, sculptures, performances, and photographic and video documentation.
Vetrina#10 is produced in collaboration with the Francesco Pantaleone Arte Contemporanea (FPAC) gallery.

Her research can be summarised in what the artist defines as "aesthetics of destruction", a set of often provocative gestures in which she destroys and reconstructs her subjects, creating striking and scenographic works. She is best known for a series of works called "Explosion", in which Longo builds real theatre sets that she then destroys through an explosion, only to rebuild everything, leaving incomplete parts as evidence of what has happened. The whole process is documented by a video projected next to the explosion scene.

For the series of works "Carpet", Loredana Longo burns the surface of Oriental carpets, embossing phrases of Western public figures with fire, creating a tension and crossover between two different worlds and cultures. The artist selects both short and meaningful phrases, words that may be used in various circumstances, creating a collection of precious aphorisms. The ability with which Longo uses a variety of materials and techniques is certainly one of her fundamental strengths. Fire is undoubtedly the medium most frequently used by the artist in the realisation of her works.

"Vetrina" is a series of exhibitions curated by Mara Sartore for Vino Vero, in collaboration with Lightbox. Throughout 2024, Vetrina will showcase the work of three women artists who all share the characteristic of a strong personality, yet their creative flair and artistic career paths differ significantly. The challenge is to present artworks within a confined space in direct contact with the public, where the display window becomes an integral part of the artistic work itself, no longer merely an exhibition space.

Loredana Longo (Catania, 1967), a graduate in Painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Catania, is known for her versatility and use of various techniques and materials in her works, which range from site-specific installations to sculptures, performances and photographic and video documentation. Her "aesthetics of destruction" is most evident in the EXPLOSION series, where the artist creates and destroys theatre sets by means of explosions, leaving incomplete parts as evidence, documented by video. The FLOOR series focuses on huge concrete floors, while in VICTORY she burns images representing dramatic situations. With more than 20 years of national and international experience, Loredana Longo stands out for her mastery of multiple materials and techniques, always paying attention to detail and demonstrating a strong social commitment through art.

Francesco Pantaleone Arte Contemporanea (FPAC) was founded in Palermo in 2003 with the intention of maintaining two privileged vantage points on contemporary art: local and international. For more than ten years, the gallery was based at the Vucciria, in the heart of Palermo's historical market. Now it is located at the Quattro Canti, the city's noble centre, and it still maintains its original mission with a programme that presents a broad and transversal research, representing established artists such as Stefano Arienti, Per Barcaly, Letizia Battaglia and Assume Vivid Astro Focus; mid-careers such as Stefania Galegati, John Kleckner and Loredana Longo; and younger artists such as Ignazio Mortellaro and Keiran Brennan Hinton. In 2017 Francesco Pantaleone inaugurated the second location of his gallery in Milan in the Porta Romana area, in order to offer his artists, the public and collectors a second display in northern Italy and to further develop what has been carried out in recent years in Palermo.