MP5
PROFILE OF THE WEEK

Image Courtesy: Alessandro Moggi

MP5

MP5 is an Italian artist known for an incisive black and white style that she expresses through a range of media, including drawing, animated video, murals, and installations. Her images reference classical art and shape a new mythology that underlies a critical and politically engaged vision of reality. Active in the underground art scene and European counterculture, over the last ten years she has created work strongly connected to the queer feminist scene. On / Off, MP5's recent work is a game of mirrors conceived for the first and second floors of the Gucci Garden. A two part wall painting, On / Off is a narration that focuses on the relationships between individuals, the wealth of physical and emotional exchange.
We had a chance to speak to the artist post the unveiling of her work at Gucci Garden.

 

MP5 as a liberating protection and strength. (Courtesy of Gucci)

A two-part wall painting: downstairs a darkened room where darkness is not perceived as a threat but

as a liberating protection and strength. (Courtesy of Gucci)

Tell us a little bit about yourself and how you were lead to the world of Art.
In the early 2000s, during the occupation of the Accademia di Belle Arti, I walked into an empty room and began to fill it with big black and white drawings. Other students were curious and started coming to see it and then began coming back, so the room became a place where people spent time. That first project led people to start to seek me out to paint centri sociali and squats. At the same time, I was awarded an artist’s residence in France, and there I created my first large-scale installation, which was inspired by a zoetrope. Creating ZOOT II led me to interact with children in a neighborhood where a lot of temporary migrants lived. The people in that neighborhood weren’t completely well-integrated and hated to be photographed, but they loved the drawing and having portraits made of themselves. Those two experiences taught me that artwork could be a tool used to get closer to people and modify a space, two elements that are still key to what I do.

 

MP5 as a liberating protection and strength. (Courtesy of Gucci)

A two-part wall painting: downstairs a darkened room where darkness is not perceived as a threat but

as a liberating protection and strength. (Courtesy of Gucci)

What inspires you as an artist?
I like to observe people and the dynamics of relationships. I’m interested in politics, psychology, superstitions. I’ve collected books about art, comics, and prints since I was little. I love film. Graphic design has always had a strong influence on my work; I think that some graphic styles encapsulate a perfect geometry of the world.
I’ve always had and continue to have so many different inspirations.

 

MP5 (Courtesy of Gucci)

Above, the same scene, immersed in light to reveals its essence.

(Courtesy of Gucci)

Why was it important for you to explore Queer Feminist themes through your art?
I became involved with the queer feminist scene at a very young age. It was natural for me to approach certain topics and support the events and ideas that are important to the movement. To me it’s natural that my own experiences are intertwined with my artistic practice, but I don’t think it’s inevitable.
I’d like artists to take public positions on subjects that are important to me, but I don’t expect their work to focus excessively on content that reflects their political positions, nor would I want it to.

 

MP5 (Courtesy of Gucci)

Above, the same scene, immersed in light to reveals its essence.

(Courtesy of Gucci)

What was your creative process like behind making the wall paintings for the Gucci Garden?
On off was a long time in the making. Florence and Renaissance frescoes inspired me to offer a new reading of a certain aspect of intimacy, of the relationships between individuals and the richness of physical and emotional exchange.

You’ve studied theatrical scenography at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Bologna and animation at the Wimbledon School of Art in London. How have these studies inspired or affected your current work?
The thing about scenography that influenced me most was definitely the study of space. Animation, on the other hand, led me to consider the relationship between space and characters.

MP5 (Courtesy of Gucci)

Making of On / Off

(Courtesy of Gucci)

Why did you venture towards Installation art?
I’ve always been fascinated by the relationship between drawing and architecture and working in the public sphere for so many years was the best way to take an in-depth look at that relationship.

Lastly, what’s next for you?
I have some projects in the works, and I’m very anxious to get back to studio work. I’m thinking about an installation project, but also an exhibition and a video animation project.

Text Nidhi Verma