Artists
-
ILARIA MARGUTTI: ART AS A PRACTICE OF LISTENING, RESISTANCE, AND AWARENESS
| by Barbara Pavan | Crossing the threshold of an artist’s studio is always an act charged with anticipation, like the beginning of a silent ritual. Every time, I wonder how much of the spirit, of the soul that manifests in the works, also inhabits the space in which they take shape. In the case of Ilaria Margutti, this question becomes even more intense. Her research, in fact, moves within inner geographies with the same intensity with which it explores the complex immensity of the Universe. In her hands, the infinitely large is translated into an alphabet of dots within the minimal perimeter of an embroidery frame traversed by a…
-
CHIACHIO & GIANNONE: TEXTILE GENEALOGIES, DOMESTIC IRONY AND THREADS OF RESISTANCE
| by Maria Rosaria Roseo | For Leo Chiachio and Daniel Giannone, art has never been just a matter of form or technique, but a deeply embodied way of inhabiting time, material, and memory. When, in 2003, they decided to unite their artistic and biographical paths, it was not simply a collaboration: their shared practice became a territory to explore, stitch, traverse, point by point, in the spirit of complicity, slowness, and fertile dialogue. Both came from a solid background in painting, but when they met, they resolutely chose to abandon the brush to take up needle and thread. This transition was anything but a renunciation; rather, it was an…
-
WEAVES OF MEANING: THE ART OF ANNEKE KLEIN BETWEEN MINIMALISM AND SOCIAL AWARENESS
| by Barbara Pavan | Anneke Klein is a Dutch fiber artist who, through essential weaves and a visual language of refined sobriety, explores the social dynamics of our time in depth. Her background as a goldsmith, her passion for weaving, and her interest in the interaction between the artwork and the viewer — and, not least, with the space itself — have led her to develop a personal and distinctive style, recognized and acclaimed in international contexts. In this interview, Klein shares her creative journey, the connection between minimal gestures and social reflection, and the most recent evolution of her work, which addresses the human need for hope, love,…
-
LAYERS OF MEANING: THE ARTISTIC UNIVERSE OF NICOLE HAVEKOST
| by Barbara Pavan | Nicole Havekost (1970) develops an artistic practice that traverses multiple media and expressive languages, maintaining as a common thread a rigorous investigation into the potential of materials and the processual dimension of creation. Her work has been presented in numerous exhibitions, both nationally and internationally, and she is currently represented by Dreamsong Gallery in Minneapolis. At the same time, she is engaged in research and teaching activities: she is a national alumni member of A.I.R. Gallery and serves as a Teaching Artist Fellow at the Center for Craft, where she deepens the relationship between artistic practice and the transmission of knowledge. Her academic training includes…
-
THE AESTHETICS OF FRAGILITY: AMY USDIN
| by Barbara Pavan | With a BFA in Graphic Communications from Washington University, St. Louis, Amy Usdin spent years as an art director before starting her studio practice in 2018. She has exhibited widely, including prestigious surveys representing the diversity and breadth of contemporary craft and fiber art, closing 2025 with a solo show at the Minneapolis Institute of Art in MN. Recognition includes publication in Fiber Art Now’s Excellence in Fibers, multiple awards from the Surface Design Association, and multiple grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and Metropolitan Regional Arts Council. Usdin is a 2024 recipient of the Stone and DeGuire Contemporary Art Award from Washington University,…
-
FIONA DAVIES: SYSTEMS OF POWER AND VULNERABILITY
| by Barbara Pavan | Fiona Davies is an Australian artist who integrates objects, video, photography, projection, installation, and performance into her practice, which is grounded in a transdisciplinary investigation of the power of systems, materials, and processes in moments of crisis. A current focus concerns the power dynamics in the interaction between patient and hospital, particularly during intensive care stays. She shared with me an in-depth account of her research and practice in the following interview. How did you come to art? I don’t remember not being aware of and not being involved with art. I’ve always wanted to be making art. From a young age maybe six or…
-
THE CONTINUOUS THREAD, FROM WEAVING TO EMBROIDERY: IN CONVERSATION WITH GRAZIA INSERILLO
| by Barbara Pavan | A few years ago, I had the opportunity to speak with the sicilian artist Grazia Inserillo (born in 1988) at a crucial moment in her artistic journey. What emerged was a deep and multilayered portrait, in which thread—understood not only as material but as a potent symbol—became a tool for anthropological and autobiographical investigation, a gesture of care, and a political act. Inserillo’s practice was rooted in the legacy of the traditional crafts of her family, rediscovering and revitalizing the art of weaving and interlacing. From this ancient action, reinterpreted as a contemporary gesture, a body of work emerged that led to international exhibitions and…
-
ALLISON HUDSON: THE ALCHEMY OF TRANSFORMATION
|by Barbara Pavan| For Allison Hudson, art is a vocation, an innate talent, a conscious choice — and, above all, a calling. A calling she tried to elude for many years, seeking more “practical” paths, but which ultimately proved inescapable. The creative avenues she had pursued up to that point had felt like compromises, partial attempts to satisfy a deeper need. It was only after a long and unintended hiatus from artistic practice that Hudson recognized her true path: to create art, and to fully embrace that part of herself. Her research manifests itself through the relentless exploration of materials. Each work is born as an act of experimentation, an…
-
CROSSING RELATIONAL SPACES. IN CONVERSATION WITH CLARA LUISELLI
| by Elena Redaelli | Clara Luiselli (Bergamo, 1975) holds a degree from the Academy of Fine Arts in Bergamo and attended courses at the Ratti Foundation and the Spinola Banna Foundation for Contemporary Art. Her artistic practice explores the relationship between artwork and viewer, space, and social dynamics through a hybrid expressive language that integrates visual arts, performance, dance, and sound experimentation. Her artistic process is driven by “continuous transformation in a fluid process of impermanence.” Everyday life’s seemingly insignificant details become opportunities for the artist to open a dialogue with the unexpected, “the other beyond oneself.” A Journey of Research and Collaboration Since her studies at the Accademia…
-
ANNE VON FREYBURG: IRONY AND SOCIAL CRITIQUE BETWEEN ORNAMENT AND IDENTITY
|by Maria Rosaria Roseo | Anne von Freyburg, a Dutch artist born in 1979, initially trained as a fashion designer at ArtEZ in Arnhem, then completed a master’s degree in Fine Art at Goldsmiths University in London, where she currently lives and works. Her artistic practice is intentionally situated between applied arts and fine arts, aiming to dissolve their hierarchies. Textile art, often relegated to a minor expression, becomes for her a critical tool to investigate aesthetics, gender, and visual culture. Through a practice she herself defines as “textile painting,” she reinterprets Rococo works with fabrics, embroidery, and decorative materials, creating a visual language where Baroque beauty merges with pop…
