Opening: 17 October 2024
Date: 18 October – 16 November 2024
Opening hours: Monday to Saturday, 12pm – 7pm
Venue: Novalis Art Design, 197 Hollywood Road, Central, Hong Kong
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Novalis Art Design, with the support of the Italian Cultural Institute, is pleased to present EROSIVA, Costanza Gastaldi’s solo exhibition showing her newest series of photographs exploring female intimacy and illness. This exhibition is curated by Angelica Moschin.
Born from the combination of two Italian words, “eros” and “corrosiva”, Erosiva is a series which explores the relationship between female intimacy and illness. Capturing different nuances of the female gaze, the project presents the image of a dignified, strong and fragile woman who faces illness with her head held high, gradually regaining confidence in her body and desires.
The depicted woman appears and disappears behind a thick veil, almost a shroud, only to emerge stronger than before. Initially contained in a delicate tension that could break at any moment, the muted contours of her figure emerge faintly from the depths of a dimly lit and almost timeless room, only to become progressively more alive and lively.
Gastaldi’s work is mainly based on a certain inclination to the tactile and on her long fascination of platinum-palladium printing, one of the noblest processes on the history of photography. Attempting to undermine the centuries-old logic that has “glamorized” female suffering as a sign of refinement in the eyes of men, Erosiva is a creative work that contains the voice of a woman who pays homage to women in an unconventional and unaffected way.
(Taken from the curatorial text prepared by Angelica Moschin)