Paulina Olowska's 'Visual Persuasion' Explores Female Eroticism at Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo

Paulina Olowska (born 1976) has created 'Visual Persuasion', an immersive exhibition at Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo in Turin, running until March 3, 2024. Coordinated by Irene Calderoni, the project redefines the exhibition space by intertwining Olowska's works with the foundation's permanent collection and pieces by other female artists. Inspired by Stephen Baker's 1961 book on visual communication's subconscious effects, the show explores desire and eroticism from a female perspective. The exhibition opens with a large installation of neon signs from 1970s Warsaw, illuminating the corridor between two main halls. The first hall focuses on the body, featuring works by Barbara Kruger, Sherrie Levine, Berlinde De Bruyckere, Cindy Sherman, and Sarah Lucas, alongside erotic drawings by Polish painter Maya Berezowska. The second hall is divided into three long corridors with video rooms, in dialogue with 'domestic' installations by Thomas Hirschhorn, Sylvie Fleury, and Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster. The exhibition extends to the restaurant, café, and bookshop, where paintings on transparent fabric interact with videos, sculptures, and photographs. The entrance hall hosts sculptures by Simon Starling and Richard Wentworth. Olowska describes her work as a mediation of forgotten cultures, using nostalgia as introspection tied to femininity and Polish history. This is the largest exhibition ever dedicated to the artist by an Italian institution.