23.05 – 09.06.2024

Emanuele Resce, Kristýna Ilek, Clarissa Falco, Sara Sundkvist and Francesco Re Li Calzi

Curated by Elena Righini

Vernissage/Avajaiset 23.05.2024 18.00 – 20.00

Between materiality and immateriality, the act of rejection manifests as a decisive  psychological mechanism, yielding a tangible byproduct: waste. Participating artists  reclaim discarded objects, imbuing them with new significance through their work  and subsequently transcending the original purpose of otherwise wasted material and  objects.

Following a successful selection for the Myymälä2 open call for exhibition projects, Italian  curator Elena Righini orchestrates the collaboration of five international artists around the  thematic exploration of rejection and its dual nature as both a physical and psychological  phenomenon.

The concept of the Immateriality of Rejection group exhibition delves into the nuanced  interpretations of the term ri-fiù-to in Italian, embodying both the noun form of the verb  rifiutare (to reject) and the definition of garbage. When an object is discarded into the waste,  it undergoes a transformation into rifiuto (waste), symbolising its rejection by whoever  created or produced it. It can be something that is no longer in use, something that we  refuse to see, something that evokes disgust or unpleasant memories.

From the moment we flush the toilet, we reject something that was a part of us and our life,  choosing not to know or care what is going to happen to it next. The physical rejection in our  daily lives absolves us of responsibility, yet the rejected entities persist, relegated to unseen  corners of our environment and psyche. However, nothing truly disappears; rather, it is  displaced to designated areas such as landfills, emblematic of a societal aversion to confronting the consequences of rejection. We desire for our cities, homes and lives to be  ‘clean’.

As we dispose of our faeces, we distance ourselves from emotions and waste, perpetuating  a social and economic system rooted in consumerism. This system encompasses not only  material productivity but also influences visual, auditory, and emotional domains. Rejection  fuels a cycle akin to bulimia, wherein conscious and deliberate obsolescence fosters a  culture where items are designed to have short lifespans, despite their potential for enduring  materiality.

Clarissa Falco’s artistic inquiry into rejection elucidates its ties to capitalist ideologies and  the corporeal realm, particularly in the ostracism of bodily elements deemed undesirable.  Through the integration of machinic components, Falco crafts sterile compositions,  paralleling the barrenness of non-recyclable waste severed from its natural cycle. This sterile  machinery symbolises an unproductive entity within societal and economic frameworks,  perpetuating a cycle of rejection and obsolescence.

Emanuele Resce’s artistic practice critiques the cult of productivity, challenging the  relentless pursuit of creation for creation’s sake. ‘I do not want to add things to what already  exists,’ says Resce: the work of art is in fact the creation of a product, which requires the use  of often valuable resources. Resce refuses to be involved in the collective psychosis of  continuous production and uses already existing materials, elevating what has been rejected  towards a new acceptance, a new dignity.

Both Falco and Resce contribute to a broader discourse on industrial archaeology, salvaging  discarded remnants to fuel creative expression. Through the discerning curation of ‘noble  waste,’ artists unearth materials imbued with aesthetic and narrative potential, underscoring  the transformative power of discarded artefacts.

Francesco Re Li Calzi explores objects deemed ‘no longer useful,’ aiming to find them a  new purpose in their environment. His work restores dignity to these discarded items by  transforming them, ensuring they reclaim their place within the system they are part of. Re Li  Calzi’s practice focuses on the intersection of art and travel: he uncovers discarded  materials during his journeys, transforming them into installations that reflect his passage  through various locations. In 2021, he travelled through the Balkan territories by bicycle,  leaving behind site-specific installations crafted from recycled materials found along the way.  This intersection of art and travel is evident in the actions Re Li Calzi takes and the lasting  impact he leaves. His work spans across video, performance, urban art, and installation, and  their uniting feature is the topic of transforming discarded objects and materials.

Much like Re Li Calzi, Sara Sundkvist embarks on a quest to explore the ignored,  overlooked and discarded. The objects she gathers are deeply rooted in their original  locations but are reimagined and repurposed to fit into the white cube environment of artistic  spaces. However, Sundkvist’s art is not about mere occupation of space; it is about its active transformation. Her pieces shape the space around them, constructing corridors and rooms  that evoke a sense of relational aesthetics. When viewers encounter Sundkvist’s works, they  are not passive spectators but active participants, navigating around them, reaching out to  interact, and immersing themselves in the experience. Like actors on a stage, they become  part of the setting. As a result, Sundkvist’s sculptures interact with each other, casting  intriguing shadows, playing with light, and creating dynamic pathways that invite exploration.

Kristýna Ilek examines rejection through a relational lens, probing how rejection weaves  through interpersonal relationships and how it symbolically manifests itself in the waste we  generate. How do we, as individuals, reject each other? How do we, as society, relate to the  waste we produce? How many of us know how waste is treated? How do we treat each  other when we reject ourselves in the first place? Can we grasp the scale of landfills of both  waste and emotions? As a dramaturg, she delves into audience engagement, collaborating  with communities and focusing on site-specificity. Through her performance, she  encourages audiences to immerse themselves in local landscapes and histories while  confronting their own experiences of it. Waste and discarded materials are intrinsic to the  spaces and relationships we inhabit, yet they often go unnoticed. In this group exhibition, Ilek  invites viewers to reflect on rejection as an act among humans. Further, she offers a  performance tour with an interactive exploration of the artworks on display. This site-specific  experience enables visitors to engage directly with the artworks while reconsidering their  own relationship with rejection and waste.

Programme  

From 16th to 26th May

ART RESIDENCY AND SITE SPECIFIC  WORK IN HELSINKI

The artists and the curator work site specifically during an art residency and  Helsinki thanks to the support of Culture  Moves Europe.

Are you curious to meet with the artists? Contact them for networking or to arrange a studio  visit!

Thursday 23rd May  

EXHIBITION OPENING AND  PERFORMANCE 

From the 23rd May to 9th June

THE EXHIBITION IS OPEN

Visit the exhibition from Wednesdays to

Saturdays 12-18 and on Sundays 12-17!

Further information about workshops and changes to the programme will be announced on  Myymälä2 Gallery website and social media channels.

For the exhibition opening, artist Kristýna  Ilek proposes a participatory performance that approaches rejection from a  dramaturgical standpoint, focusing on  audience interaction and community engagement. Through immersive, site specific performance, she prompts visitors  to reconsider their relationship with waste  and the environment.

Saturday 25th May

CRAFTING TRASH WORKSHOP

Finnish artist Sara Sundkvist offers a  creative workshop open to the public.  Participants will be encouraged to bring  household waste, which Sundkvist will  then guide them in transforming into small  artworks using her

About the artists

Emanuele Resce was born in Italy in 1987. After graduating from Benevento High School of  Art in 2006, he moved to Germany, first to Munich then to Saarbruken, later settling in Milan  where he currently lives and works. His artistic practice resumed in 2013 after a few years of

Marxist political activity, and takes place for the most part in working studios shared with  other young artists who come from different backgrounds and experiences.

Kristýna Ilek is a multidisciplinary artist and dramaturg from Prague, currently based in  Belfast. She is a member of European Dare to Care Art Collective. In her artistic practice,  she focuses on community projects and art in public space. She is also currently completing  a PhD in Dramaturgy and Healthy Creative Practices.

Clarissa Falco is an italian artist. Her works start from the idea of the body conceived as a  machine, beyond the distinction between subject and object, which is deprived of its  appearance to become an engine and gear, part of a machine. In the performative activity,  the machine-body binarism is expressed through an automatic gesture of the performers, as  if trapped in a time loop that is always the same.

Sara Sundkvist is a Finnish artist. By using old and recycled materials, she strives to get  closer to the earth and closer to a slower way of living. Creating with techniques that people  have been using for hundreds of years, she transfers her heritage to a new generation.  Sundkvist’s work is a mixture of play and seriousness, simple shapes and hours of labour.

Francesco Re Li Calzi is a multidisciplinary artist born in 1997 in Italy. His work is focused  on the importance of experience more than representation. In the last years he is developing  a form of art untied from pre-established objects and places through bike trips in which his  body and the surrounding environment become the only and infinite available ingredients.

About the curator  

The exhibition is curated by Elena Righini, an independent italian curator based in Spain.  After her studies in Italy and France she is now doing a PhD on Sustainable Curatorial Practices and often works on the intersection between science and contemporary art. She is  specialised in Eco Art and sustainable aspects of curating as well as in cultural welfare.  She oversaw all aspects of the project, from curating to project management and  communication.

This work was produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union.