Galleri K

The exhibition is planned by Elena Povellato and curated by Daniela Ferretti. It has been produced by San Servolo Servizi Metropolitani, the institution that runs the Museum and the Archive of the former Insane Asylum, located on the island of San Servolo. 

The Norwegian artist Anne-Karin Furunes has studied the photographic archives at San Servolo and selected the group of portraits shown in this exhibition. 

The site-specific installation, in the garden of San Servolo Isle, introduces the visitor to the past life of the island. In the artist’s own words: 

“It is not only about making the portraits come alive, but also a wish to show their beauty and humanity and by doing so remind those of us living today that something was very much wrong at the time the pictures were taken. By their presence they make us reflect upon our own time and how we define those who are said to be different.” 

The installation consists of a series of images perforated on aluminum panels, leaning in different angles. 

“In a certain position, the transparent images overlap and create the effect of interference, or moire?. When looked at close up, the image disappears and you can see only the holes. When viewed at a distance, and in suffused light, the same image becomes clear and sharp.This reminds me of a memory which dissolves as soon as you are trying to remember the actual thing or event.” 

The curator Daniela Ferretti writes about the collaboration with the artist: 

“After the experience of Shadows at Palazzo Fortuny, we confronted the new project with enthusiasm and determination, established the sizes of each single work, and shared the delicate phases of the set-up.We have repeatedly walked through the site of the installation, set the boun- daries of the scenic space, and eventually placed the images; the subterranean rhythms that subtly tie the protagonists have been reassembled in the fragile dialogues and desperate silences of the ineluctable human comedy.”