Peripheral Memories is a project that brings memory, identity and territory into dialogue through the sensitivity of contemporary artists-in-residence. Through the experiences of Michela Tabaton-Osbourne and Emily Mallia, the project aims to explore and reinterpret the historical and cultural signs that have shaped our border, involving communities, businesses and other local realities.
EMILY MALLIA / in residence in GEMONA
The Peripheral Memories project invites artist Emily Mallia to explore the connections between collective memory, reconstruction and human fragility through an artistic residency in the area affected by the 1976 earthquake.
The residency will focus on the analysis of cement, a material that embodies the dual value of memory of the tragedy and symbol of rebirth, also in the productive and industrial sector. The artist will investigate the relationship between construction, destruction and reconstruction. Emily will meet with the local community and some companies to create a work that combines material and thematic dimensions. The expected result is an artistic intervention that reflects on resilience and collective identity through cement, the medium that most characterised Friuli’s reconstruction.
ACTIVITIES AND EVENTS WITH THE ARTIST:
Visiting the Molinaro Manufatti company
Monday 24 February 2025
During the residency, Emily Mallia will visit the Molinaro Manufatti company, which was already active during the 1976 earthquake. The meeting is an opportunity to explore production processes and the role of small and medium-sized companies in the reconstruction of the Friuli area. There will be moments of dialogue with company representatives, historical memory bearers and technicians, to explore the essence of cement, with a focus on past and contemporary processing techniques. The company will also provide materials and tools to enrich the artist’s creative journey.
Visit to the Tiere Motus museum
Tuesday 25 February 2025
Emily will take part in an exciting guided tour of the Tiere Motus Museum, where she will have the opportunity to meet some local inhabitants who survived the 1976 earthquake. Through their touching stories and experiences, she will immerse herself in the collective memory of a resilient community.
Following this, the artist will explore the historic town of Venzone, a jewel that bears the traces of the past and of rebirth.
Creative workshop with artist Emily Mallia for girls and boys 11+: ‘The fragility of concrete’
Wednesday 26 February 2025 / from 1.30 p.m. to 3.30 p.m., at the Mariano del Friuli workshop
With the contribution of the artist and the collaboration of the Comfort Zone art therapists and educators, participants will be able to take part in a creative workshop that links the working of the material, its destruction and its reconstruction with beeswax. Cement, apparently strong but in reality fragile, is a metaphor of the human psyche and of the memory of the territories on the extreme north-eastern border (the Julian Alps and Karst, Udine and Isonzo) where industrial disinvestment has given way to the enhancement of the manufacturing realities that are still present and active in the characteristic sectors of the regional economy.
Meet the artist!
28 February 2025 / from 18:00 to 19:15, at LAB Terremoto – Piazza Municipio 5, Gemona
At the end of her artistic residency, Emily Mallia will present to the public the result of her research on the territory of the Friuli earthquake of ‘76.
During this meeting open to the public, the artist will reflect on the link between collective memory, post-earthquake reconstruction, and the production and use of cement, a symbol of fragility and resilience. The meeting will be an opportunity to discover his creative path, which interweaves local materials and stories, giving voice to emotions and experiences linked to reconstruction.
The event is free and open to all, booking required at prenotazioni@iodeposito.org
THE ARTIST
Emily Rosaria Mallia (Agrigento, 1999) is an Italian artist who completed her studies in Painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice, obtaining her Second Level Diploma in 2024. Her artistic practice focuses on the exploration of emotional fragility through the dialogue between the outer and inner worlds. Using materials such as concrete, typically perceived as resistant, Mallia shows its fragilities through acid treatments, transforming the building element into a mirror of the human soul. Among his most significant works are ‘Um jeden Preis’ and ‘Nameless XI’, where the alteration of the material reflects the tension between strength and vulnerability. In 2023, he participated in the DOT Contemporary Arts Festival in Favara organised by Yard44. He currently lives and works in Düsseldorf, Germany.
The project is funded by the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region.
The programme’s activities are free and open to all, upon booking: prenotazioni@iodeposito.org
