{"id":6261,"date":"2026-09-22T11:15:47","date_gmt":"2026-09-22T11:15:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.txtilezine.com\/?p=6261"},"modified":"2026-09-22T11:28:20","modified_gmt":"2026-09-22T11:28:20","slug":"the-way-words-turn-when-language-becomes-matter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.txtilezine.com\/en\/the-way-words-turn-when-language-becomes-matter\/","title":{"rendered":"THE WAY WORDS TURN: WHEN LANGUAGE BECOMES MATTER"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As part of New York Textile Month<\/strong> and the city\u2019s September art and design calendar, Scavolini SoHo Gallery<\/strong> presents The Way Words Turn<\/em><\/strong>, an exhibition project by Federica Patera and Andrea Sbra Perego<\/strong>, Italian artists based in New York whose practice brings together textile art, language, sculpture, installation, and research into verbal roots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The project, realized in collaboration with The CAMP Gallery in Miami<\/strong>, was conceived specifically for the Scavolini showroom in SoHo and draws on a selection of works from the Roots<\/em> series, an ongoing body of research exploring the relationship between linguistic roots, matter, and the construction of reality. Here, the space is not treated as a neutral exhibition container: its architecture, surfaces, materials, and points of visibility become integral to the intervention through a series of site-responsive works developed in dialogue with the environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the foundation of the research is a text: \u00c9l\u00e9mire Zolla\u2019s essay Language and Cosmogony<\/em>, which reflects on the story of Creation and the development of languages across the world, both ancient and modern. It is from this reflection on origins that Patera and Sbra Perego developed the idea of Roots<\/em> as a kind of cosmogony: an inquiry into beginnings, into the moment when something takes shape, the ways in which it comes into being, and the order that determines its development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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From this perspective, the roots of words represent something more than an etymological component. The artists approach them as essential forms capable of containing stories that transcend historical time and geographical boundaries. Traces of distant systems of knowledge continue to survive within contemporary language, remaining active and constantly evolving. The word thus becomes a living organism in motion, and its transformation provides the starting point for an investigation into the relationship between the creative act and the construction of reality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In The Way Words Turn<\/em>, this reflection takes physical form through textile. All the works presented are made using materials supplied by Carvico S.p.A., an Italian company specializing in high-performance technical textiles and internationally recognized for its commitment to research, innovation, quality, and sustainability. The exhibition continues the artists\u2019 collaboration with the company, focusing on the possibilities of transforming industrial textile materials through contemporary artistic practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The works are produced through slow, manual processes of shaping, wrapping, and covering. Words are gradually detached from their original function and acquire a physical and sculptural dimension. In the process, the immediate meaning of the word tends to dissolve, giving way to a more open, fluid, and unstable condition. Language becomes matter, writing acquires a physical presence, and text enters space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This passage from word to form is one of the central elements of the project. The works do not simply ask to be read, but to be physically encountered: as surfaces, traces, volumes, and presences. Within the context of the Scavolini showroom, this transformation also creates a dialogue between contemporary textile practice, Italian design, and the domestic imagination. A space traditionally associated with living and inhabiting is thus reconsidered as a place where language can be experienced through matter and its relationship with architecture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The exhibition will be on view through October 13, 2026<\/strong>, at Scavolini SoHo Gallery, 429 West Broadway, New York, NY 10012<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Way Words Turn<\/em> is also presented in collaboration with The CAMP Gallery in Miami, which is open Wednesday through Saturday, from 11 AM to 6 PM. Private tours can be arranged by contacting the gallery at hello@thecampgallery.com<\/a> or by calling 786-953-8807.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As part of New York Textile Month and the city\u2019s September art and design calendar, Scavolini SoHo Gallery presents The Way Words Turn, an exhibition project by Federica Patera and Andrea Sbra Perego, Italian artists based in New York whose practice brings together textile art, language, sculpture, installation, and research into verbal roots. The project, realized in collaboration with The CAMP Gallery in Miami, was conceived specifically for the Scavolini showroom in SoHo and draws on a selection of works from the Roots series, an ongoing body of research exploring the relationship between linguistic roots, matter, and the construction of reality. Here, the space is not treated as a neutral exhibition container: its architecture, surfaces, materials, and points of visibility become integral to the intervention through a series of site-responsive works developed in dialogue with the environment. At the foundation of the research is a text: \u00c9l\u00e9mire Zolla\u2019s essay Language and Cosmogony, which reflects on the story of Creation and the development of languages across the world, both ancient and modern. It is from this reflection on origins that Patera and Sbra Perego developed the idea of Roots as a kind of cosmogony: an inquiry into beginnings, into the moment when something takes shape, the ways in which it comes into being, and the order that determines its development. From this perspective, the roots of words represent something more than an etymological component. The artists approach them as essential forms capable of containing stories that transcend historical time and geographical boundaries. Traces of distant systems of knowledge continue to survive within contemporary language, remaining active and constantly evolving. The word thus becomes a living organism in motion, and its transformation provides the starting point for an investigation into the relationship between the creative act and the construction of reality. In The Way Words Turn, this reflection takes physical form through textile. All the works presented are made using materials supplied by Carvico S.p.A., an Italian company specializing in high-performance technical textiles and internationally recognized for its commitment to research, innovation, quality, and sustainability. The exhibition continues the artists\u2019 collaboration with the company, focusing on the possibilities of transforming industrial textile materials through contemporary artistic practice. The works are produced through slow, manual processes of shaping, wrapping, and covering. Words are gradually detached from their original function and acquire a physical and sculptural dimension. In the process, the immediate meaning of the word tends to dissolve, giving way to a more open, fluid, and unstable condition. Language becomes matter, writing acquires a physical presence, and text enters space. This passage from word to form is one of the central elements of the project. The works do not simply ask to be read, but to be physically encountered: as surfaces, traces, volumes, and presences. Within the context of the Scavolini showroom, this transformation also creates a dialogue between contemporary textile practice, Italian design, and the domestic imagination. A space traditionally associated with living and inhabiting is thus reconsidered as a place where language can be experienced through matter and its relationship with architecture. The exhibition will be on view through October 13, 2026, at Scavolini SoHo Gallery, 429 West Broadway, New York, NY 10012. The Way Words Turn is also presented in collaboration with The CAMP Gallery in Miami, which is open Wednesday through Saturday, from 11 AM to 6 PM. Private tours can be arranged by contacting the gallery at hello@thecampgallery.com or by calling 786-953-8807.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":6238,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[64],"tags":[602,600,306,603],"class_list":["post-6261","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exhibitions","tag-andrea-sbra-perego-2","tag-federica-patera-2","tag-new-york-textile-month-2","tag-scavolini-soho-gallery-2"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t