The Uncanny Valley

The exhibition “The Uncanny Valley” is part of the Eau&Gaz residency programme which, on the occasion of its 5th anniversary in 2019, takes place both at its original cultural centre of Lanserhaus in Eppan, South Tyrol and at FuturDome, an independent museum in Milan.

The artists featured, both current and former participants of the residency programme, are invited to reflect upon the concept of “uncanny” and “uncanniness” as defined by Sigmund Freud in his dedicated essay: “uncanny” is something which is both familiar and unfamiliar, which lies hidden and suppressed but can sometimes emerge.

“The Uncanny Valley” of the title, more precisely, refers to the case in which, artificially created characters carry a significant degree of human resemblance, triggering in their human counterparts empathic reactions. In connection with the territory of South Tyrol, the exhibition aims to explore the relation between the unfamiliar and what is known, and the consequent sense of displacement and exclusion, referencing in particular the history of South Tyrol, annexed to Italy one hundred years ago.