Fondazione Memmo hosts the exhibition Soft You by Anthea Hamilton (1978, lives and works in London), curated by Alessio Antoniolli. The British artist, a finalist of the prestigious Turner Prize in 2016, included in the 58th Venice Biennale in 2019, followed by projects for Kaufmann Repetto, Milan, 2022, artist Anthea Hamilton debuts on the artistic and cultural scene of Rome by presenting an exhibition which shows the outcome of a residency conducted in Rome through a series of new unpublished works conceived with the foundation.
Anthea Hamilton, “Soft You”, installation view, Fondazione Memmo, Roma © Daniele Molajoli, courtesy Fondazione Memmo
Whilst the Roman artistic-cultural context contributes to informing the artist’s sculptural and plastic research, it is also true, in the curator’s words, that the artist intends to suggest a ‘degree zero’ of artistic research. Aesthetically and stylistically, this is evident in the artist’s desire to rethink the plastic and sculptural tradition, citing the modern and minimalist lesson, to encourage experimentation between art, design, film, fashion, performance, and installation, also inviting artists, artisans and designers such as Alice Rivalta, Pietroarco Franchetti, Tanguy Poujol and Ezra-Lloyd Jackson to contribute to her work.
Anthea Hamilton, “Soft You”, installation view, Fondazione Memmo, Roma © Daniele Molajoli, courtesy Fondazione Memmo
The title Soft You (Soft you. A word or two before you go – act V, scene II) is a quote from Othello’s last monologue in Shakespeare’s tragedy, 1603, to which Hamilton dedicates the entire exhibition through a mise-en-scène that, although unintentional, is reflected in a highly scenographic setting. The exhibition itself is in line with the stage performance Othello: A Play, 2024, which the artist conceived in collaboration with Delphine Gaborit for the De Singel art center in Antwerp, testifying to Hamilton’s interest in this figure who, at Fondazione Memmo, returns through a series of video stills taken by Tanguy Poujol: these are portraits of Othello that transfigure through the acts of the performance almost merging into a sculptural representation. Alongside the figure of Othello, there is the series of Shibari Chefs figures, mannequins made of fiberglass and jute rope who, in addition to wearing the costumes from that time, use the ancient Japanese bondage technique, shibari, for spiritual and strategic purposes.
Production stills from the performance “Othello: A Play”, De Singel (Antwerp), 2024; co-directors: Anthea Hamilton and Delphine Gaborit; images: Tanguy Poujol; performers: NaÏm Belhaloumi, Alphonse Eklou, Nathan Feliot-Rivot digital c-print on cotton paper, aluminium frame and antireflective glass cm 41 x 31,5 x 3,5 each, ph. courtesy Fondazione Memmo
But the figure of Othello is accompanied by the presence of the artist herself who, in a veiled manner, leads us on a path of becoming. Her presence is affirmed by Leg Chair (Rankaku), 2025, a sculpture in plexiglass, brass and wood decorated with the Rankaku technique (quail eggs and lacquer), which introduces a recurring motif: the image of the artist’s legs that return in series and in movement in Calzedonia (Hot Legs), 2025, life-size sculptures that occupy the entire main room of the foundation, speaking of the artist’s pressing pace in the time of formation. This is accompanied by another symbolism addressed in a dual manner by Hamilton: the image of the butterfly found in Transposed Lime Waves, 2025, composed of a series of digitally printed fragments, impressed on cotton canvas and steel and held together by a series of steel pins. This biographical session ends with the subtle trace of the artist who, quoting the verse Soft You, gently intervenes on the walls and architecture of the foundation.
Anthea Hamilton “Calzedonia (Hot Legs)”, 2025 digitally printed bull denim, digitally printed plush velvet, digital print on vynil, textiles, wood, pastels, spray paint, plexiglass, metal flowers site-specific installation, variable dimensions
The exhibition unfolds as a love dialogue between Othello and the artist herself, a veiled dialogue not devoid of eclecticism and estrangement. In this sense, it is interesting to think how on the occasion of the Soft You exhibition, Anthea Hamilton decides to enhance not so much the physical and spatial function of sculpture, but its evocative and imaginative function. This is clearly visible in the central sculpture Shibari Desk, 2025, a wooden desk decorated with the Rankaku technique, then bound with jute ropes, which in its forms cites the modernist tradition, but which makes use of sophisticated material and decorative experimentation also thanks to the contribution of Alice Rivalta and Pietro Franchetti, triggering a reflection on the body towards the entire exhibition. The gravity of this sculpture contrasts with the series of Metal Screen panels, 2025, which guide the path, activating a process of self-reflection for the viewer and finally crowning the exhibition scene are the essences Cold, Cold Heart Incense, 2022, which diffuse a series of fragrances created by the olfactory designer Ezra-Lloyd Jackson in the exhibition space. Between hybrid stylistic quotations and suggestions, the Soft You exhibition celebrates the contribution that Andrea Hamilton brings to sculptural and performative practices, expertly blending artistic languages in a staging of contemporary tragedy.
Info:
Anthea Hamilton. Soft You
Fondazione Memmo, Roma
curated by Alessio Antoniolli
8/05/2025 – 2/11/2025
Fondazione Memmo
Via della Fontanella di Borghese, 56/b – Roma
www.fondazionememmo.it
She is interested in the visual, verbal and textual aspects of the Modern Contemporary Arts. From historical-artistic studies at the Cà Foscari University, Venice, she has specialized in teaching and curatorial practice at the IED, Rome, and Christie’s London. The field of her research activity focuses on the theme of Light from the 1950s to current times, ontologically considering artistic, phenomenological and visual innovation aspects.
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