Inanimate Existence – Student Show
Reviving the unused
As curators, our journey toward this exhibition began with a shared interest for the lifecycle of objects—their creation, use, and eventual discard. Throughout the process, we reflected on how objects, once deemed essential, are so easily discarded the moment they fail to fulfill their intended purpose. This failure often results in their exile from our lives, yet they are still present. This realization made us question the value systems we impose on the material world. Why does an object’s worth depend solely on its utility? What stories could these discarded objects tell if we saw them not as useless, but as full of potential?
By challenging their utility-based purpose, we aim to foster a space where discarded items can ‘live’ again—this time as bearers of meaning, imagination. The exhibition collectively becomes not only a site for reflection but also a speculative space for building a more thoughtful future. Through this reimagining, we hope to shift perspectives—from seeing failure as an end to seeing it as an opening for innovation and renewal.
To further expand our point of view, we decided with the LdM gallery staff to launch an Open Call for student artworks aimed at all LdM and LdM Marist students that wished to express themselves creatively on the topic.
Among the interesting proposals that we received, the jury selected 10 projects that are presented in the exhibition.
The artists Gina Bae, Tomo Borromeo, Aliyah Goldberg, Samuel Hromec, Girija Jhalani, Theodore Lance & Carlo Marshall, Gretta Lemke, Belis Ozbek, Lucia Rodriguez, Rylie Severino interpreted the topic through a variety of materials and techniques from video installation, collage, installation, sculpture, photography, jewelry and crochet.
During the process, selected artists shared some creative moments together, visiting artist studios and participating in a workshop where they created a collective installation out of objects that were meaningful to them. We believe that sharing and reusing ideas, experiences, and feelings is a way to reach new possibilities and expand our creativity.
Samuel Hromec and Belis Ozbek, artists/curators
Exhibition Dates: December 5th – December 13th, LdM Gallery, via de’ Pucci 4
The LdM Gallery is a project by Istituto Lorenzo de’ Medici, an interdisciplinary space where academic research and artistic experimentation meet within a professional setting.