24 Carats

Project created during the last bridge art residency, February to March 2019, Noto, Sicily

The research developed in this residence brings the Carruba tree, a native plant of Sicily, North Africa and the Middle East, to the center of attention.
The unit of measurement of purity of gold and precious stones, the carat, is born from the seed of the carob plant. The term derives from Arabic, which means "twenty-fourth part", and in ancient times they were used these seeds for the exceptional uniformity of weight (each of them approximately 1/5 of a gram).
The project aims to focus attention on our perception and consideration of the preciousness of a single element. Gold, an emblematic symbol of royalty, well-being and economic security. A given preciousness by the value given to it by man, and on which our current society is structured. The truth is that the real preciousness of this mineral is precisely its natural essence.
I spent the first two weeks of residency inside a nature reserve, I was mainly interested in walking and getting lost in those spaces "getting lost means that between us and the space there is not just a relationship of domination, of control by the subject, but also the possibility that space dominates us... being forced to continually recreate points of reference is regenerating on a psychic level.." Franco la Cecla.
The work was thus structured with two performances, one inside the Vendicari natural park, where I created a 50 meter straight line through the positioning of 24 carob plants inserted inside of vases made of raw earth and buried, and an extemporaneous one, where through a simple and repetitive action I seek the perfection of a small carob seed, weighing every single seed in search of the perfect carat (0.20g), and giving sound the important task of establishing the connection between action, space and the spectator.

24 Carats
Project realized during last bridge art residence, February to March 2019, Noto, Sicily

The research developed in this residence draws attention on the Carruba tree, a native plant of Sicily, northern Africa, and the Middle East. From the seed of carob plant comes the unit of measurement of the purity of gold and precious stones, the so-called carat. The term comes from Arabic, it means "twenty-fourth part", and in antiquity, these seeds were used for their exceptional weight uniformity (each of them about 1/5 grams). The project wants to focus attention on our perception and consideration of the preciousness of a single element. Gold, emblematic symbol of royalty, economic well-being, and security. A preciousness coming from the value men gave to it, from which our modern society was structured. The truth is that the real preciosity of this mineral is its natural essence. I spent the first two weeks of residence inside a nature reserve, I was mainly interested in walking and getting lost in those spaces. "Getting lost means that between us and space there is not only a relationship of domination, control by us, but also the possibility that space dominates us ... being forced to continually recreate reference points, is regenerating on a psychic level ..." Franco la Cecla. The work was thus structured in two performances. One inside the natural park of Vendicari, where I realized a 50 meters straight line through the placement of 24 carob seedlings inserted inside pots made of raw earth and buried. The other, an impromptu, in which, through a simple and repetitive action, I look for the perfection of a small carob seed, weighing every single seed in search for the perfect carat (0.20g). Giving the sound the important task of establishing the connection between action, space, and the viewer.