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Rosa Mundi - ' Metamorphic Posthuman

Part of the San Marino National Pavilion, Venice Biennale

Curated by James Putnam & Angela Vettese


Palazzo Dona dale Rose, Fondamenta Nove, Cannaregio 5038 Venezia


April 22- November 27, 2022

'Metamorphic Posthuman' is about the evolution and extinction of humanity set against the geological timeline from the earliest epoch to what is currently defined as the Anthropocene.

It aims to demonstrate the folly of mankind’s dominating instinct proposing that it should return to its original place, as an integrated rather than a superior part of nature. It also seeks to point out how powerless we are compared to the forces of nature in the wider universe.  The art works are arranged as if to represent the imaginary study of a superior being who is contemplating all the various epochs of mankind. These are categorised via the metaphor of 17 transparent suitcases cataloguing humanity’s passage through time with the gradual transition from herbivorous mammals to Homo sapiens. They represent this journey through the various epochs with humanity’s disreputable ‘baggage’, composed of natural and artificial materials, enclosed within the suitcases. The final one represents mankind’s extinction in which is displayed a fictional mechanical rabbit in an upright position. The suitcases are arranged in the configuration of a dinosaur skeleton, hence the title Europasaurus/ European dinosaur. Above the suitcases are placed 15 small spherical astrolabes that represent a parallel vertebral column of humanity’s history and its relationship with the universe.

 The dominant motif in Metamorphic Posthuman is the armillary sphere or spherical astrolabe, which is one of the defining characteristics of Rosa Mundi’s fertile imagination with her installation ‘Sfere Armillari 22’. Dating back to ancient times the armillary or spherical astrolabe is an astronomical device for representing the great circles of the heavens with a central sphere symbolizing either the Earth or the Sun. She has created her own unique version, consisting of three elliptical iron circles, set one inside the other, made from recycled iron from old, disused wine barrels from a Castle in Piedmont.  

Mounted within the armillary are glass panels with a recycled plastic coating on which she paints a series of images using a special paint she has developed comprising tempera with natural pigments, mixed with an organic material extracted from beached jellyfish from the Venetian lagoon They also include texts written in ancient languages. The installation is accompanied by a soundscape with the noise of humanity merging with the pulse of the earth. Her work expressing the Big Bang theory, entitled 3333 A.D. is symbolised by a cube of Belgian pure black marble with a mirror-like polished finish.

 

 

http://www.rosamundivisualart.com/

 

Rosa Mundi - ' Metamorphic Posthuman

Rosa Mundi - ' Metamorphic Posthuman

 
 

Rosa Mundi - ' Metamorphic Posthuman

Rosa Mundi - ' Metamorphic Posthuman


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