The Italian artist Paolo Peroni creatively explores how between the natural world and produced object, the human intermediary continuously self-develops. Paolo works in thematic cycles touching on different subjects. His art expresses an intense reflection and conveys intuitive concepts about the tensions between the individual, the group, and the external environment, and on urban development as a continuing need to destroy in order to rebuild.
In Cairo, Paolo created two installations in October 2016:
In the one titled “Genotipo & Fenotipo”, the ethereal images of cellular structures photographed under a microscope, and urban tissue photographed from a satellite were printed on either side of transparent plastic panels, so they could be seen simultaneously, superimposed. The resulting vision of micro- and macro-scale realities running into each other highlighted coherence of patterns, hinting at a deeper connection.
“Maze” was a work inspired by Kufic calligraphy. This was a maze created of Egyptian cloths and recycled objects from the city’s daily life, following the shape of the letters in the word “reading”. The viewer who walks through it experiences being lost, and at the same time feels involved in daily activities, as if praying, eating, or going to work at the same hours every day.
This dual experience exposes both the feeling of safety resulting from following daily routines, and the hazard of becoming lost in these very routines when they are divorced from their purpose and meaning.
The residency of Paolo Peroni in Egypt was supported by the Italian Cultural Institute in Cairo.
