Matteo Messori's Roof at Galleria Parmeggiani Explores Loss and Rebirth

Matteo Messori (Reggio Emilia, 1993) presents Roof at Galleria Parmeggiani in Reggio Emilia, curated within the Interno 1 space. The exhibition examines the concept of 'crisis of presence,' a term by anthropologist Ernesto de Martino, describing disorientation after loss. Works are reconfigured in dialogue with the venue, staging stages of collapse, rebirth, recovery, and proactivity. Key pieces include Crisi della presenza, a sawdust magic circle on the floor that will be destroyed at the show's end, with remnants collected in a container as a physical embodiment of crisis. The totem Roof, previously shown in Pescara, appears collapsed on the ground, evoking a fallen roof under a sky of lilies. The series Fiati in the corridors uses breath to narrate the process of metabolizing loss. Catrame resembles a tombstone, referencing tar that inhibits growth, linking personal crisis to environmental degradation. A small canvas depicts the Leviathan as a sea monster symbolizing power but also nature's protector, suggesting ecological thinking as a way out. The exhibition rhythm mirrors breathing, pacing a slow journey toward renewed balance with the world.