Mai-Thu Perret

Conceived for the spaces of the Swiss Institute in Rome, the first major solo exhibition in Italy by Swiss artist Mai-Thu Perret includes existing and newly produced works, offering an overview of the themes, processes and materials explored by the artist.

The sculptures, paintings, ceramic works, sound installations and texts stand at the intersection of contemporary culture, art history criticism and materiality. The title of the exhibition is both a play on words with the Italian term “estate” (the summer season) and a reference to the title of the final volume of Deborah Levy’s critically acclaimed “Living Autobiography”, an elegant exploration of the concept of home, of the feelings and specters it evokes. The reflection on the house, on domestic and non-domestic spaces, on the female figures who inhabit them and on the connotations of gender in architecture are in fact themes that are present throughout the exhibition.

At the same time as the exhibition, it will be possible to see the semi-permanent installation recently commissioned from Mai-Thu Perret for the entrance of Villa Maraini: a neon work that illuminates the building and is visible to passers-by on Via Ludovisi.