Gianluca Concialdi on Painting, Performance, and Palermo

Gianluca Concialdi (Palermo, 1981) works at the intersection of painting, sculpture, and installation, exploring how architectural spaces can be seen as informal or minimal pictorial elements. His works often feature abstract forms that morph into ghostly figures, strange amoebas, or giant protozoa, sometimes referencing found images. He uses inexpensive materials like dust paper, which he considers an affective support that speaks of the future. Concialdi destroyed his photo archive, stating it influenced his life. He denies any performative component in his work, despite a 2011 event at Milan's Caimi pool where he writhed in phosphorescent liquid. A 2012 performance involved a ten-meter canvas immersed for a month in the contaminated Rio Irvi in Sardinia, then shipped from Cagliari to Palermo. His 2018 solo show "Curva di Gallo" at Clima, Milan, curated by Geraldine Blais, featured works titled after imaginary yet real Instagram geolocations, such as "Lido Crucicchia Albatros Beach" and "Pollo fantasma." The show's title references a conversation with a Palermo artisan about the shape of rooster sternums. A ceramic toothbrush holder, a copy of one from his studio, punctuated the gallery. Concialdi currently lives and works in Palermo, the only place he can afford a studio.