ALESSANDRO ROMA, Appearances

Guided tour of the exhibition *Presenze* by the artist Alessandro Roma.

The exhibition, curated by Domenico Iaracà, marks a new stage in the long-standing artistic journey of Alessandro Roma, a Milanese artist active in Italy and abroad, whose practice – stemming from a predominantly painterly background – has gradually expanded to include ceramics, collage, sculpture, fabric printing and experimentation with different techniques and materials. The central theme of the exhibition is nature – a living, generative presence that flows through the rooms of the palace and establishes a unique dialogue with the murals, stucco work and decorations of this neoclassical residence. Roma’s works seem to reclaim spaces that are, only in appearance, devoid of the natural element, giving rise to interior landscapes in which real experiences and imagination converge.

The exhibition opens with an enigmatic figure, reminiscent of the plumage of an exotic bird, in which the absence of a face draws the visitor into a suspended universe. Room after room, polychrome plant elements unfold: stems and leaves belonging to unidentified species, slabs covered in lush natural interlacing, and works in which shapes and colours move away from realistic representation to compose an ideal herbarium and bestiary. Nature no longer serves as a backdrop or a mere symbolic element, but becomes the absolute protagonist. The discreet role of the human figure seems to overturn the traditional hierarchies of representation: it is nature — from which we are born and to which we return — that asserts itself as the central presence, an inexhaustible source of forms, colours and creative possibilities.

During the visit, one also encounters faces mounted on tripods and decorated on both sides. These works prompt the audience to reflect on the multiplicity of identity and on the gap between the face we show to others and our more intimate, inner self. In this way, the human figure, too, moves away from mimetic representation, allowing itself to be permeated and transformed by the natural element. The dialogue with Palazzo Milzetti plays a fundamental role: the plant forms created by the artist meet those already preserved in the rooms’ decorations and stucco work, extending ideally beyond the windows, into the internal garden and the spaces surrounding the romantic cottage recently acquired by the Museum.

Born in Milan in 1977, Alessandro Roma has exhibited at numerous museums and galleries in Italy and abroad. His work transforms experiences, memories and literary references into inner landscapes, making them tangible and accessible to the viewer. His works have been exhibited, amongst others, at the International Museum of Ceramics in Faenza, the MART in Rovereto, the Ettore Fico Museum in Turin, the Milan Triennale, the Carlo Zauli Museum in Faenza, the Jorn House Museum in Albissola, the Villa Croce Museum in Genoa, and in galleries and institutions in London, New York, Berlin, Brussels and Paris.

The exhibition is the result of a collaboration between Palazzo Milzetti – the National Museum of the Neoclassical Period in Romagna – and the International Museum of Ceramics in Faenza, and forms part of the programme of official events for Argillà Italia 2026.

The works were created thanks to the contribution and expertise of various craft and ceramics workshops, including Bottega Gatti, Bottega Lega, Bottega Vignoli, Pantoù Ceramics and Elvira Keller in Faenza, Ceramiche Mazzotti in Albissola, and Ceramiche d’Arte Dolfi by Ivana Antonini in Montelupo.