Chiara Bettazzi's Cabinet Wunderkammer at Castello di Ama

At Castello di Ama in Chianti Classico, artist Chiara Bettazzi has created Cabinet, a site-specific installation that transforms a former kitchen into a wunderkammer. The work is part of the Castello di Ama per l'Arte Contemporanea project, launched in the late 1990s by Lorenza Sebasti and Marco Pallanti. Bettazzi's Cabinet is a temporary work, unlike the permanent installations by Anish Kapoor, Daniel Buren, Louise Bourgeois, Giulio Paolini, and Roni Horn at the same venue. The installation incorporates materials recovered on-site and objects from the artist's archive, including glass vases, porcelain, disassembled furniture, and plants from the estate. Cabinet is part of Bettazzi's Wonder Objects project, initiated in 2013. The work will evolve over time through natural processes like fermentation, decomposition, and the growth of mold and fungi, reflecting on the passage of time. The presentation coincided with the launch of Nomen Rosae Absolue, a fragrance by perfumer Michele Marin. Sebasti conceived the idea of pairing the fragrance with Bettazzi's work after visiting Ilmondoinfine: vivere tra le rovine, a show curated by Ilaria Bussoni at the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna in Rome. Cabinet is the first temporary work at Castello di Ama and signals interest in emerging Italian artists.