Diana Markosian Explores Intimacy and Memory in 'Replaced' at Gallerie d'Italia, Turin

Diana Markosian's exhibition 'Replaced' at Gallerie d'Italia, Turin, examines romantic intimacy and emotional residue after rupture through photography and immersive film. The installation uses split screens, overlapping sequences, and drifting sound to create perceptual drift, where memory functions as interference rather than record. Markosian, born in Moscow in 1989, works across photography, film, and installation, focusing on fragmentation and emotional discontinuity shaped by migration between Russia and the United States. Her earlier projects include 'Santa Barbara' (2020), tracing her family's migration from post-Soviet Moscow to California, and 'Father' (2024), revisiting a long-separated relationship through staged encounters. 'Replaced' extends these concerns into romantic intimacy, with scenes of affection, tension, and separation recurring in shifting configurations. A photobook co-published by Allemandi and Atelier EXB accompanies the exhibition. The spatial design encourages interruption and return, with works distributed across walls and screens. Gallerie d'Italia's network in Milan, Naples, Turin, and Vicenza places contemporary practice in dialogue with historical architecture. The exhibition runs until 6 September 2026. The text was written by Simon Cartwright for Aesthetica Magazine.