IAGA Contemporary Art is glad to present to the public the first solo exhibition signed by Silvia Inselvini (Brescia,1987) in the spaces of the National Art Museum of Cluj-Napoca, entitled Il crepuscolo degli uomini / The crepuscule of men.

The exhibition project exhibited on this occasion is composed exclusively of works of the cycle Notturni (Nocturnes), on which the artist has been working for several years and which she herself defines as “[…]a prayer.” In these works, the artist covers her A4s with ballpoint pen ink, erasing any trace of white from the paper. This erasure, in successive layers, gives rise to a new iridescent-oily uniformity, at first only in blue or black, now also green and red. From these pages so similar to a carbon paper, however, no faithful transcription emerges, but rather an unprecedented Revelation. Indeed, by subjecting the immaculate paper to her scribal effort, Inselvini appropriates the entire mystical-symbolic tradition of the revealing Light, to contrast it with a Darkness just as redemptive and more suitable to her, that of her Notturni (Nocturnes, a title common to the entire cycle), in which epiphanic portions of the Infinite are manifested.
“There are 2247 pieces so far – Silvia points out – excluding the uncoded sheets”. The number refers to the entry from the 10th of March 2023 on a strict register, to be transcribed in “good copy”, where the pens used for each sheet have been recorded with accounting accuracy. The quantity noted to this date, however, does not take into account the works removed which are neither signed nor stamped, because they are “unsuitable” for the function they are supposed to perform: to bring us closer to the dimension of the Absolute. Through what Inselvini calls a “transcendent writing”, in fact, her will is to understand what, in life, lies beyond language.

Curated by Beatrice C. Benedetti & Florin Gherasim

An exhibition realized by IAGA Contemporary Art in collaboration with the Nation Art Museum of Cluj-Napoca

Exhibition venue
National Art Museum of Cluj-Napoca, Piaţa Unirii nr. 30, Cluj-Napoca, Romania

Visiting hours
From Wednesday to Sunday by purchasing a ticket from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm (last access is allowed until 4:30 pm).

Period
April 20 – May 7, 2023

Opening
Thursday April 20, 2023, at 6:00 pm

Press release (EN)

Notturni
2021, ball point pen on paper, 60×42 cm