On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the Contemporary Art Foundations Committee, Fondazione Pastificio Cerere and RUFA, together with Fondazione Memmo and NOMAS Foundation, present the solo exhibitions of artists Daria Shoshani and Bianca Poláková, students of the Fine Arts Master’s programme at RUFA.
On Wednesday, October 16 at 6:00 pm, the exhibition 1+1=11 by Daria Shoshani, curated by Fabrizio Pizzuto, will open to the public and remain on display until Tuesday, October 29, 2024. Daria Shoshani, a multimedia artist with a background in humanities and scenography, works with sculpture, video, and installations. Her research is rooted in exploring how the immaterial aspects of existence—such as fantasy, sensuality, taboo, cultural heritage, and a sense of belonging—interact with material ones. Through the creation of dreamlike atmospheres, the artist rethinks everyday life, focusing on the relationship between art and reality.
The exhibition 1+1=11 presents a collection of works that trace the contours of bodies, whose shapes become traces, remnants, and measurements of what the body has been within a relationship. Space measures the bodies, bodies measure other bodies, and together they measure the space itself. The exhibition reflects on the themes of proximity and coupling, analyzing the solitude that can persist even within human connections.
Photo credit: Daria Shoshani
The project continues with WHAT WE LOOK FOR BEYOND SEEING, the solo exhibition by Bianca Poláková, curated by Fabrizio Pizzuto, opening on Thursday, October 31 at 6:00 pm, and remaining on view until Friday, November 15, 2024.
Poláková’s exhibition explores fairy tales and their impact on both individuals and society. Six enclosed spaces, covered in resin, take the form of seed pods, each containing a world of its own and acting as a portal between the present and possible literary worlds. The boundaries between different natural systems are broken down, synthesized, and reformulated, creating an interpretative space where the viewer can reinvent and rethink their own story.
The installation recreates a sense of wonder: when the head enters the pods (or portals), the feet remain anchored to the real world, while the mind is transported elsewhere.
WHAT WE LOOK FOR BEYOND SEEING addresses themes such as growth, the loss of time—especially during the pandemic—war, loneliness, and anxiety, reflecting the search for a happy ending. This project invites the viewer to forget themselves and the surrounding world, opening their eyes to a new sense of wonder and otherness.
THE ARTISTS
Daria Shoshani (Jerusalem, 1998). Currently living and working in Rome, she is enrolled in the Master’s programme in Visual Arts, Sculpture, and Installation at the Rome University of Fine Arts (RUFA). She graduated from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in the department of general and comparative literature.
Bianca Poláková (Bratislava, 2000). Currently living and working in Rome, she is enrolled in the Master’s programme in Visual Arts, Sculpture, and Installation at the Rome University of Fine Arts (RUFA). She completed her undergraduate studies at the Academy of Arts in Banská Bystrica (Visual Communication Studio) in the Department of Graphics.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Opening of Daria Shoshani’s 1+1=11: October 16, 6:00 pm Dates: October 17-29, 2024 Hours: 9 am-8 pm, Mon-Fri Location: RUFA Space, Pastificio Cerere, via degli Ausoni 7, 00185 Rome Info: Tel. 0685865917
Opening of Bianca Poláková’s WHAT WE LOOK FOR BEYOND SEEING: October 31, 6:00 pm
Dates: November 2–15, 2024
Hours: 9 am-8 pm, Mon-Fri
Location: RUFA Space, Pastificio Cerere, via degli Ausoni 7, 00185 Rome
Info: Tel. 0685865917
Contemporary Art Foundations Committee
The Contemporary Art Foundations Committee is a network of private foundations active throughout Italy, created to enhance the public/private relationship in contemporary art and culture, strengthen relationships with institutions and local communities, and promote further partnerships to improve Italy’s art system.
Founded in 2014, the Committee now includes 18 members. Created with the aim of establishing a dialogue with the Ministry of Culture and its Directorate-General for Contemporary Creativity (DGCC), the Committee signed its first Memorandum of Understanding with the MiC in 2015 and a second in 2021. Under the 2021 Memorandum, the DGCC and the Committee are currently developing “Bel Paese. Promoting Italian Art Around the World,” an international networking programme supporting Italian artists.