Luca Trevisani's Raymond Project Concludes at Castelbuono Museum

Luca Trevisani's multi-year Raymond project, dedicated to French writer Raymond Roussel, culminates in a solo exhibition titled 'Raymond controfigura' at the Museo Civico di Castelbuono, opening July 29. The project began on July 27, 2015, when Trevisani first visited Palermo to prepare a previous Roussel-themed show. Central to the initiative is a collaboration with Olaf Nicolai, inviting 31 international artists to stay at the Grand Hotel et des Palmes in Palermo, where Roussel died by suicide on July 14, 1933, in room 224. Artists left traces of their presence throughout the hotel. Notable interventions include Francesco Cavaliere's hallucinatory oral performances, Michael Dean's sculptural embodiment of Roussel's compositional method in room 347, Jason Dodge's perfume for hotel staff, Haris Epaminonda's fragmented sound architecture, and Maurizio Mercuri's diet-based living sculptures. Trevisani describes the project as a 'zoo hosting poetic life forms.' The final exhibition at Castelbuono, directed by Laura Barreca, is supported by the Italian Council (DGAAP) and the Fondazione per l'Arte e il Museo di Castelbuono. A publication with Humboldt Books is also planned. Trevisani's collaborative approach was influenced by his earlier project 'Sudan,' where he traveled to Kenya to see the last white rhinoceros, emphasizing shared creative experience over production.