Address
INLOCO Open storage
WH 5, 4 19 Street, Al Khayat Avenue, Al Quoz
Working hours
Monday – Friday 12 pm – 8 pm
Saturday & Sunday by appointment only
Schedule a private viewing
+971501886034
info@inlocogallery.com
INLOCO Open storage
WH 5, 4 19 Street, Al Khayat Avenue, Al Quoz
Working hours
Monday – Friday 12 pm – 8 pm
Saturday & Sunday by appointment only
Schedule a private viewing
+971501886034
info@inlocogallery.com
February 28 – June 15, 2024
The Idealised City
“THE IDEALISED CITY”
BY CONTEMPORARY ARTIST FILIPPO MINELLI
“The Idealised City” marked Filippo Minelli’s first solo exhibition and site-specific intervention in the UAE, showcased at Inloco in 2024. The project culminated in a body of work across diverse mediums, including photography, painting, a textile flag, video, and an outdoor inflatable sculpture.
This interdisciplinary research project delves into the study and artistic interpretation of the ubiquitous identities and landscapes that emerged in the post-globalist era. The exhibition's title references Leon Battista Alberti’s (1404–1472) concept of the Ideal City, which proposes that cities should be designed with specialized architecture tailored to different population segments. Within this theoretical framework, individuals establish their most profound sense of identity through their relationship with the surrounding landscape. In contrast to the Renaissance European approach, modern attitudes toward the urban environment often align with the heritage of Bedouin traditions, which emphasize a lack of deep attachment to permanent architecture and cityscape, a focus on a constant movement, adaptability, and impermanence, reflecting a more fluid and responsive approach to city-making.
This interdisciplinary research project delves into the study and artistic interpretation of the ubiquitous identities and landscapes that emerged in the post-globalist era. The exhibition's title references Leon Battista Alberti’s (1404–1472) concept of the Ideal City, which proposes that cities should be designed with specialized architecture tailored to different population segments. Within this theoretical framework, individuals establish their most profound sense of identity through their relationship with the surrounding landscape. In contrast to the Renaissance European approach, modern attitudes toward the urban environment often align with the heritage of Bedouin traditions, which emphasize a lack of deep attachment to permanent architecture and cityscape, a focus on a constant movement, adaptability, and impermanence, reflecting a more fluid and responsive approach to city-making.
OUTDOOR INFLATABLE SCULPTURE
THE IDEALISED CITY, 2024
4,5 m x 1,5 m x 4,6 m
Fabric shell, air blower, cords
Unique
Fabric shell, air blower, cords
Unique
SOLO EXHIBITION
FILIPPO MINELLI | SOLO EXHIBITION
February 28, 2024 – June 15, 2024
exhibition catalogue
The “Idealized City” exhibition catalogue explores post-globalization urban landscapes through Filippo Minelli’s artistic research and features texts by Dr. Khaled Alawadi and Dr. Santiago Zabala.
AUTHOR
“I work analysing and interacting with landscape, and I’m very interested in the relation between landscape and identity, and human practices within spaces and aesthetics”.
Filippo Minelli, born in Italy in 1983, is an internationally recognized contemporary artist known for his deep exploration and research into the contemporary landscape and its cultural dynamics. He creates engaging installations and performances, which are extensively documented through photography and video. His artistic focus is primarily on liminal spaces and geographic areas in the post-globalization world. Throughout his career, he has participated in numerous key art events, including MANIFESTA12 at the Palazzo Ajutamicristo in Palermo, Italy as well as in PREVIEW and group shows at Artspace Abu Dhabi in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
Filippo Minelli, born in Italy in 1983, is an internationally recognized contemporary artist known for his deep exploration and research into the contemporary landscape and its cultural dynamics. He creates engaging installations and performances, which are extensively documented through photography and video. His artistic focus is primarily on liminal spaces and geographic areas in the post-globalization world. Throughout his career, he has participated in numerous key art events, including MANIFESTA12 at the Palazzo Ajutamicristo in Palermo, Italy as well as in PREVIEW and group shows at Artspace Abu Dhabi in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
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Press about “THE IDEALISED CITY”
Project Statement
In the contemporary world, as people move from place to place, architecture and historical artefacts cease to play a key role in shaping the identity of a place. Modern attitudes to the urban environment refer often to the heritage of Bedouin traditions — specifically nomadism — which is characterized by the absence of a deep connection with permanent architecture, and the presence of constant movement, mutability, impermanence, and multiculturalism. This way of life is reminiscent of the ancient theory of the “Virtuous City” (al-Madinat al-Fadilah) by the Eastern thinker Abu Nasr Muhammad al-Farabi (870-950), who turned to more fluid concepts of building cities that are not necessarily tied to the historical past but rather can adapt according to the times.
Drawing inspiration from these ideas, the main visual language of the exhibition takes the form of universal renderings and stock images, which act as a symbol of constant transformation and movement towards the ideal and which, nevertheless, can be found in any international landscape — natural or digital.
The Idealised City is about how similar we are wherever we are. It questions authenticity, the boundaries between reality and fiction, the meaning of photography, and the function of images in the digital age. The exhibition consists of an outdoor installation, photographs, videos, paintings, and sculptural elements, combined to give the viewer an immersive gallery experience, expanding into a digital format through playful interactions within the Metaverse.
For the occasion, the artist developed a kaleidoscopic production with a variety of mediums, but keeping a focus on the contemporary landscape as a way to translate anthropologic processes, as he often operates.
Drawing inspiration from these ideas, the main visual language of the exhibition takes the form of universal renderings and stock images, which act as a symbol of constant transformation and movement towards the ideal and which, nevertheless, can be found in any international landscape — natural or digital.
The Idealised City is about how similar we are wherever we are. It questions authenticity, the boundaries between reality and fiction, the meaning of photography, and the function of images in the digital age. The exhibition consists of an outdoor installation, photographs, videos, paintings, and sculptural elements, combined to give the viewer an immersive gallery experience, expanding into a digital format through playful interactions within the Metaverse.
For the occasion, the artist developed a kaleidoscopic production with a variety of mediums, but keeping a focus on the contemporary landscape as a way to translate anthropologic processes, as he often operates.
