Christian Fogarolli: A Form of Delusion

The exhibition offers the public the possibility of interacting with a corpus of works conceived specifically for the gallery spaces. It consists of a series of works – environmental installations, sculptures and photographs – inspired by the condition known as ‘Glass Delusion’, a psychiatric disorder widespread in Europe, especially between the 15th and 19th centuries, which leads those affected to believe they are made of glass and, therefore, liable to shatter. The glass man syndrome, like the terracotta or concrete man syndrome, is characterised by a dissociation between imagination and reality, with the sufferer believing that his body is vulnerable to the point of disintegration, due to the material it is made of.

It reflects, emblematically, a state of profound intellectual and emotional fragility, the same that, to different degrees and in different forms, affects much of the contemporary society.

In Christian Fogarolli‘s artistic practice past and present intertwine in photographic works, installations, sculptures and videos; traces and fragments of an indefinite time are linked to glass, mirror, metal, organic and technological materials.

Starting from a historical and archival investigation and through direct collaborations with scientific research centres, the artist works following an interdisciplinary approach, looking at medical, psychiatric, psychological, anthropological and natural science studies.