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From Studio Stefania Miscetti FB page:


STUDIO STEFANIA MISCETTI is delighted to present Pagine (Pages), a solo exhibition dedicated to the work of Maria Lai, one of the most important Italian artists of the late twentieth century, whose output was recently celebrated at the 57th Venice Biennale, and as part of both the Athenian and Kassel editions of Documenta 14.

Pagine is the fourth solo exhibition dedicated to Maria Lai at the gallery, following on from the 1991 performance-installation, La leggenda di Maria Pietra (The Legend of Maria Pietra) and the solo shows Una fiaba infinita (An endless fairytale) in 1994 and A portata di mano (Within arm’s reach) in 2005, as well as a long series of talks and introductions.
More than an anthology, Pagine seeks to pay homage to a tireless and versatile artist, one to whom the history of the Studio Stefania Miscetti is indelibly linked.

The exhibition, made possible thanks to the support of the Maria Lai Archives, brings together approximately forty pieces created between the 1950s and 2000s, ranging from work on panels and paper to ceramics, books and fabrics. The ‘pages’ alluded to in the exhibition title are both those literally present in the pieces exhibited, and metaphorically those relevant to the artist’s personal story. Every one is emblematic of a vital and irrepressible research process which embraced, from her years at the Academy of Fine Arts onwards, a diversity of materials and techniques: from the drawings and paintings of the 1950s, to the work with fabrics, looms, breads and terracotta of the 1970s, up to the performances and environmental actions undertaken in the 1980s – including the seminal piece of collective direct action, Legarsi alla montagna (To Tie Oneself To The Mountain) in 1982. Following an interest in theatre and local action in the 1990s, in the 2000s the artist’s main priority shifted to her work with schools.

This panoramic retrospective of Maria Lai’s career is completed by four documentaries dedicated to the artist: Legarsi alla montagna (To Tie Oneself to the Mountain), Il dio distratto, Viaggio nel mondo magico di Maria Lai (The Distracted God, Journey into the Magical World of Maria Lai), Ansia d’infinito, (Anxieties of the Infinite), Maremuro. Appunti per un dialogo realmeraviglioso (Maremuro. Notes for a Truemarvellous Conversation). A host of photographic and other archive material related to the artist’s past work with the Studio will also be available to view at the gallery.

Stefania Miscetti would like to thank Chiara Manca, Maria Sofia Pisu and Francesco Proia for their invaluable contributions to the exhibition.


MARIA LAI
pagine

opening: Thursday 18 January 2018 – 18.00
closes: 31 March 2018

opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday, from 16.00 to 20.00.

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The University of Dundee is a registered Scottish Charity, No: SC015096