Valie Export and Ketty La Rocca in Body Sign at Thaddaeus Ropac Milan
Thaddaeus Ropac's Milan gallery presents 'Body Sign', a two-artist exhibition pairing Valie Export (b. 1940, Austria) and Ketty La Rocca (b. 1956, La Spezia). The show centers on hands as a conceptual and visual motif, exploring the body through semiotic and performative practices. La Rocca's 'Craniologie' overlay X-ray images of a skull with her hand and the repeated word 'you', while Export's video 'SYNTAGMA' shows her hands emerging from darkness. The exhibition includes photographs and videos documenting urban performances, such as Export lying on asphalt contorted like a rubber band, and La Rocca's PVC letters 'J' (Je) from bed performances. Both artists challenge patriarchal language and social norms through radical feminist expression. The show is the second winter exhibition since the gallery's opening in Palazzo Belgioioso, Milan.
Key facts
- Exhibition 'Body Sign' at Thaddaeus Ropac Milan features Valie Export and Ketty La Rocca.
- Valie Export is an Austrian artist born 1940, pioneer of radical feminist film and installation.
- Ketty La Rocca was born in La Spezia in 1956, influenced by Umberto Eco and Roland Barthes.
- The exhibition focuses on hands as a central element in both artists' work.
- La Rocca's 'Craniologie' combine X-ray skull images with her hand and the word 'you'.
- Export's video 'SYNTAGMA' shows hands emerging from darkness.
- The show includes photographs of Export's urban performances and La Rocca's 'J' letter works.
- The exhibition is held at Palazzo Belgioioso in Milan.
Entities
Artists
- Valie Export
- Ketty La Rocca
- Umberto Eco
- Roland Barthes
Institutions
- Thaddaeus Ropac
- Palazzo Belgioioso
- Artribune
Locations
- Milan
- Italy
- Austria
- La Spezia
- Firenze
- Vienna