Arithmias of modernity. the invention of the desert and memories of colonialism in fiat 633nm
a mind the gap conversation between Eleonora Roaro and Andrea Mariani at 6 pm
Trieste Contemporanea will host on Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 6 pm the meeting Arithmias of Modernity. The Invention of the Desert and the Memories of Colonialism in FIAT 633NM by Eleonora Roaro. The artist will engage in a conversation with Andrea Mariani, Professor of Cinema, Photography, and Television at the University of Udine.
The in-depth exploration presented at Studio Tommaseo is part of the rich interdisciplinary program of screenings and conferences accompanying the eighth edition of the Mind the Gap project, launched by Altreforme in 2017 in collaboration with various cultural and institutional entities in the Friuli Venezia Giulia region. The 2025 theme, How Do You Construct Images of the Other?, raises questions about the ways we create images that overwrite desires, demands, cultures, and bodies. It expands on the artistic works’ suggestions by incorporating scientific, historical, philosophical, and sociological perspectives.
In the context of investigating Fascist colonialism in Africa in the late 1930s, particularly in the territories of Ethiopia and Eritrea, Eleonora Roaro and Andrea Mariani’s talk aims to deconstruct the myth of modernity starting from two emblematic and mutually antithetical elements: the desert environment, perceived as a territory yet to be colonized, and the means of transportation. In Andrea Mariani’s book “L’audacissimo viaggio: I media, il deserto e il cinema nella microstoria della spedizione Tripoli-Addis Ababa 1937” (2017), the automobile reveals its limitations in its attempt to control the territory: the efficiency promoted by the modernist myth of technology collapses in the face of failures and errors. In Eleonora Roaro’s audio-video installation “FIAT 633NM” (2021), on the other hand, the FIAT truck becomes a symbol of fascist rhetoric about infrastructure and the need to dominate time and the unknown. The desert landscape thus stands as a cultural invention, a space ideologically constructed to legitimize forms of abuse and domination.
The event is part of the public program of the exhibition How do you construct images of the other?, organized by Altreforme in collaboration with the Municipality of Udine and on view at Casa Cavazzini, Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Udine, until March 16, 2025.
The meeting is part of the public program of the exhibition Come costruisci le immagini dell’altro? (How do you construct images of the other?), produced by Altreforme in collaboration with the City of Udine and open at Casa Cavazzini, Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Udine until March 16, 2025.
Admission is free while places last.
See the schedule of events here: www.projectmindthegap.it/conferenze-e-laboratori/
Eleonora Roaro is a visual artist and researcher based in Milan. She studied Photography at IED Milan, Visual Arts and Curatorial Studies at NABA and Contemporary Art Practice at Plymouth University.Her works are often the result of research that digs deep into archival materials, highlighting, through the moving image, submerged stories and unusual details removed or distorted from collective and individual memories. Since 2011, his work has been exhibited in numerous museums and galleries, including La Triennale, Milan; Fabbrica del Vapore, Milan; Casa degli Artisti, Milan; Museo Diffuso, Turin; CAMERA, Turin; MACRO, Rome; CAMeC, La Spezia; E-Werk, Freiburg; Maison de la Culture, Clermont-Ferrand; La Friche, Marseille; and Istituto Italiano di Cultura, Madrid-Prague. In academia, he is also a lecturer at NABA and IED in Milan and has published articles in scientific journals such as L’avventura, Alphaville and LabCom.
Andrea Mariani is Associate Professor at the University of Udine (Italy), where he teaches Media Theory, Film Philology and Exhibition Design. He is currently Principal Investigator of the PRIN2022 project FilmBaseMatters: A Material Approach to the History of Small-Gauge Film in Italy and scientific contributor to the Amateur Movie Database (https://www.amateurcinema.org). He is also editor of the publishing series Plexus (Meltemi) and ExSeries (Mimesis/DSL Press+).
Mind The Gap is a project funded by the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia and the Municipality of Udine, with the support of Fondazione Friuli, Fondazione Pietro Pittini, Boato International, Legacoop Fvg. With the patronage and collaboration of the University of Udine, University Iuav Venice, Master Moving Images. Supporting the project as operating partners: Agorè Associazione di Promozione Sociale (GO), Adriatico Book Club (VE), Associazione Etrarte (UD), Ater (UD), Centro Espressioni Cinematografiche (UD), Cinemazero (PN), Cooperativa Aracon (UD), Enfap FVG (GO) Fondo per l’Audiovisivo FVG (UD), Lago Film Fest (TV), Liceo Caterina Percoto (UD), Young for Fun (GO). www.projectmindthegap.it