Exhibition Highlights Plight of Female Agricultural Workers in Southern Italy

The Pinacoteca Metropolitana Corrado Giaquinto in Bari is presenting 'Le invisibili. Esistenze radicali,' an exhibition by artist Pamela Diamante, curated by Roberto Lacarbonara, from February 21 to April 21, 2026. Supported by the PAC2025 plan from the Ministry of Culture and coordinated by the Città Metropolitana di Bari, the project focuses on seasonal female agricultural laborers in Southern Italy, who face low wages, poor working conditions, and social marginalization due to gender, geographic origin, and manual labor stereotypes. Diamante's work uses language analysis to deconstruct derogatory terms like 'terrone,' transforming them into tools for critical awareness through art. The installation features sixteen vertical iron structures topped with ceramic hoes, each representing a participating worker and standing twice their height to create a perspective shift. Arranged in hexagonal modules reminiscent of beehives, the pieces emphasize collective strength and incorporate traditional Apulian ceramic craftsmanship. The exhibition is installed in the Sala del Colonnato of the Palazzo della Città Metropolitana, engaging in a critical dialogue with existing fascist-era sculptures by Giulio Cozzoli that celebrate heroic male labor. Accompanied by a catalog published by Magonza with texts by Lacarbonara, Claudia Attimonelli, and Vincenzo Susca, and photographs by Michele Alberto Sereni, the project includes study days at the University of Montpellier and the University of Bari's 'Carla Lonzi' Gender Archive. Developed through collaboration with the Sweetnet network by ActionAid International Italia and Fondazione CDP, the artwork builds on direct conversations with the workers, integrating their experiences into its core. The exhibition aims to give visibility to marginalized groups, challenging cultural and economic systems that exclude them from public representation.