Elena Mazzi's Rebus Mural Activates Turin Suburb with Public Art

Elena Mazzi (Reggio Emilia, 1984) has created a public artwork titled "Rebus" on the facade of the Istituto Comprensivo Salvemini in Turin's Mirafiori Sud district, a multicultural suburb with high numbers of residents from Romania, Morocco, Peru, and Egypt. The project, called "Facciamo pArte. La scuola come piace a noi," was initiated by the Fondazione Agnelli in collaboration with the Pinacoteca Giovanni e Marella Agnelli. Mazzi was selected by the Pinacoteca Agnelli to lead a five-month participatory workshop with primary school students and teachers, resulting in a word-and-image puzzle that plays on the words "ape-rta" (open) and "u-mani-tà" (humanity) to promote inclusion and respect for all social and religious communities. The artist, who recently won a practice-based PhD at Villa Arson in Nice for 2022-2025, emphasized that the process focused on belonging to a school community and using art as a collective tool. The project originated in 2021 from a dialogue between Fondazione Agnelli (a social sciences research institute founded by FIAT in 1966) and Exor group companies on ESG interventions in education. The idea was selected with help from school principal Barbara Floris, and the Pinacoteca Agnelli, directed by Sarah Cosulich, oversaw the development. Cosulich noted that rebuses invite interaction and open-ended reflection, hoping the community recognizes itself in the concepts of openness and humanity.