From June 18 until July 12 2018, Matèria relocates to Palermo within the spaces of Frontiera Studio in Via Alloro 36. On the occasion of the nomad Manifesta 12, the gallery presents Dialogue #1, an exhibition showcasing a selection of works by its roster of represented artists: Fabio Barile, Giulia Marchi, Mario Cresci, Xiaoyi Chen, Giuseppe De Mattia, Marta Mancini and Stefano Canto. Featured in Frontiera Studio’s 110 square meter space are the diverse approaches tied to contemporary artistic research found within the practice of the exhibited artists, whose work is tied by a district propensity for experimentation within their chosen field.

Numerous mediums are showcased: from Stefano Canto’s AE Rep.3, the final result of quick setting cement powder, solidified through the dialogue with melting blocks of ice; to Fabio Barile’s Transform fault. Toilet paper, floor and couscous, powder spice, a series of images focusing on geological dynamics and the study of landscape; to Marta Mancini’s Untitled, a large scale work sourced from her most recent cycle of paintings, in which the overlapping of flat color erases the underlying thick and intricate  brushstrokes. The artist is also present in the exhibition with Untitled from 2009, a small-sized self-portrait highlighting the origins of the Mancini’s practice.

Mario Cresci is represented with two works, Traslazione (from the series Avvicinamento, Rotazione, Traslazione, Milano – Matera 1971-73) and Relazioni, separazioni, analogie, Bergamo 1994-95. In the latter one, the composition is created through the repetition and the translation of the same photographic image, partially visible through the tears of the overlaid tissue paper; an approach aimed at directing our gaze to the details of the subject matter depicted.

On the contrary, Giuseppe de Mattia, with Cancellature rosso scarlatto (le palme di Luca), Bologna 2016-  2017 (part of the extended body of work Dispositivi per non vedere bene Roma), hides the image through specific color samples (Crimson in this case), applied upon selected areas suggested to him by artists, critics and artisans chosen to collaborate on the project. The idea of delegating the compositional choices to a third party is also present in the site-specific three-piece installation titled Il mare di Bologna, in which self made instruments become tools constructed for drawing lines, thus expanding and dialoguing with the possibilities provides by a specific technical tool combined with the artists’s own practice.

Finally, a strong tendency for experimentation is on display within the works of Xiaoyi Chen and Giulia Marchi. With Traces and H2o, Chen employs the photographic medium to go beyond traditional representation, swiftly moving toward abstraction and expanding her subject’s dimensions in the attempt of transforming what is recognisable into in a complex matrix of lines and textures. With Fluxus, Giulia Marchi, chooses a self made circular lens mask applied to a pinhole camera, to produce a series of polaroids referencing the moon, with each image differing in color scheme based on the surfaces photographed and the timeframe chosen for the exposure to light.

Dialogue #1 is part of OUTER CIRCLE, a special project that sees Matèria partnering with D.O.O.R., Gibellina PhotoRoad, Cesura, a r c h i p e l a g o and Studio Frontiera for a programme of exhibitions, talks and workshops spanning from June until October.