Pietro Ruffo
CONSTELLATIONS/MIGRATION
May 3 – June 30, 2019
For an artist, it is always a unique challenge to glean new insights from complex phenomena, such as that of human migration—an ancient, mysterious process that involves many peoples and nations and a welter of data and cultural forces. In CONSTELLATIONS/MIGRATION, Rome-based artist Pietro Ruffo draws inspiration from the geographers, cartographers, and astronomers of antiquity to tackle the timeless mysteries of human movement, conflict, and assimilation. Assuming that migration and resettlement have always been central to the survival of all species, the artist explores these elusive themes in a series of extraordinary works that reflect on the ancient frictions and fusions between peoples, places, and cultures of the world.
With these multifaceted works, this exhibition casts a spotlight on the timeless phenomena of the displacement of persons and cultures, from the rich perspective of global history.
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Pietro Ruffo (b. 1978) studied Architecture at the University of Rome before moving to New York for a research scholarship at Columbia University. Since 2004, he has been working in Rome from his studio at Pastificio Cerere. Ruffo’s art investigates the great issues of universal history—especially individual freedom and dignity, which are constantly threatened by the ongoing homogenization contemporary society. Ruffo’s main solo exhibitions include: Constelacoes Migracoes, Centro cultural Correios, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; L’illusion parfaite, Galerie Italienne, Paris; Terra Incognita, Delhi; Breve storia del resto del mondo, Fondazione Puglisi Cosentino, Catania, Italy; SPAD SVII, Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna, Rome; The Political Gymnasium, Blain Southern London; A Complex Instant, Moscow, special project for the Fourth Moscow Biennale; Irhal Irhal, Lorcan O’Neill Gallery, Rome.
