Blanca Matías Fernandez's 'Santabarbara' Queers Francoist Archives in Palermo

Blanca Matías Fernandez's exhibition 'Santabarbara' at Haus Der Kunst in Palermo's Cantieri Culturali alla Zisa, in collaboration with the Sicilia Queer International New Visions Filmfest, runs until June 13. The show uses archival images to challenge traditionalist thought, focusing on gender roles, female identity, and the legacy of Francoist Spain. Key works include the photo series 'Invisibles,' featuring figures like Florencio Pla Meseguer (also known as 'La Pastora' or 'Durruti'), an intersex person imprisoned by the Franco regime, and Flor De Otoño (Lluìs Serracalt), an anarchist revolutionary. Another photograph depicts Marcela Gracia Ibeas and Mario Sánchez (Elisa Sánchez Loriga), whose marriage is considered Spain's first same-sex union. The installation 'MIA' presents over 300 Italian pulp romance novel covers from the 1960s-80s, vacuum-sealed to critique the commodification of female bodies. 'Amo' features hooks embedded in the wall symbolizing oppression. The video 'Carrying' shows Matías reenacting Pepe Espaliú's 1992 performance, where he was carried through Madrid and San Sebastian as a commentary on AIDS stigma; Matías concludes her version at Palazzo Steri, the former Spanish Inquisition tribunal in Sicily. The exhibition is part of the 16th edition of the Sicilia Queer Filmfest, held May 25-31.