marinella senatore

Lives and works in Cava de' Tirreni, SA, Italy

Artist statement

BIO / ARTIST STATEMENT Marinella Senatore (b. 1977, Italy) has developed a multidisciplinary practice spanning tapestry, light sculpture, collage, drawing and performance. For over two decades, her research — rooted in participation, pedagogy and shared knowledge— has involved millions of participants across more than twenty-four countries. Drawing from public celebrations, processional cultures, theatre, music, vernacular traditions and informal systems of knowledge, she constructs layered visual worlds in which personal and collective narratives converge. Recurring motifs — including landscapes, gestures, architectural fragment and text — generate an iconography that runs throughout her practice. These elements operate as part of an evolving contemporary mythology, through which questions of visibility, agency, belonging and transformation are continually renegotiated and reimagined. Her large scale installation draw on the architectural language of Southern Italian “luminarie”, translating temporary structures of celebration into contemporary sculptural forms fostering engagement and assembly. Rather than simply representing participation, Senatore’s works are grounded in long-term workshops, encounters and shared processes, making visible the ways in which collective imagination takes form. Founded in 2012, The School of Narrative Dance (SOND) constitutes the most radical dimension of Senatore’s engagement with collective practices. Developed through workshops, public...

Artwork