From April 18 to June 15, 2025, Momart Gallery will host Surface of Tides, a solo exhibition by Marco Tagliafico, curated by Matteo Galbiati.
The exhibition marks the conclusion of the artist’s residency in Matera, held at I Tre Portali, a space dedicated to art residencies in collaboration with Momart and reserved for the overall winner of the Arteam Cup. Marco Tagliafico (Alessandria, 1985) was awarded the title of winner of the Photography section and overall winner of Arteam Cup 2023 with the work Il dorso del cielo (2023). The artist was selected for his ability to develop photographic language in an innovative and unconventional way. His work Il dorso del cielo was unanimously awarded by the jury for its skill in transforming photography into a novel visual experience, where the image appears as an apparition—a detail opening up new interpretative possibilities. The use of color and black and white, sensitivity to transparencies, and an installation approach make the work immersive and dynamic. As the winner of the Photography section, Tagliafico received numerous recognitions, including: an artist residency in Matera with a solo show at Momart Gallery, a residency at CasermArcheologica in Sansepolcro (AR), the production of a photographic exhibition by Studio Berné in Legnano (MI), a monograph published by Vanillaedizioni, and professional consultancy from Arteam throughout 2024. Additionally, he received the Prize, which includes a purchase award of €2,500, a dedicated cover, and a monographic feature in a
magazine.
The exhibition is organized in collaboration with the Arteam Cultural Association, organizer of the Prize. During his stay in Matera, in November 2024, Tagliafico explored the historic and natural landscape of the area, walking ancient paths connecting the city to the Murgia caves. A particularly meaningful experience was a day spent among the Pisticci badlands, a lunar landscape shaped by millennia of erosion, where fossils emerge from the earth, telling the region’s geological memory. This scenery profoundly influenced his artistic research, fueling his reflection on the relationship between time, matter, and memory. The artist’s approach combines traditional photographic techniques, such as cyanotype and silver salt printing, with different materials like canvas, glass, and steel. His work creates a dialogue between past and present, nature and artificiality, where blue—the iconic color of his poetic—is intertwined with the ochre tones of the Lucanian landscape. In this visual narrative, the earth meets the sea, which once submerged the region during the Cretaceous period, creating a play of emergence and disappearance, of traces revealed and memories hidden by time.
Matteo Galbiati writes: “Marco Tagliafico renews, therefore, the typology of the photographic landscape – and not only – which, thanks to the encounter with Painting, gains the possibility of a rich and articulated mixture of intriguing stimuli and unexpected proposals, evident assertions and possible concealments. Through the changing and alternating chromatic fabric, the image confirmed by the shots admits the suspension of habitual judgment because the gaze is questioned by other (un)expected stimuli. The vibrations of color bring to the surface, passing them into the filigree of the meanders of memory, intensities that already inhabit our memories or open the way to new meanings. Every one of his visual thoughts walks, with a sure step, along the edge of panoramas whose horizons come alive by assimilating the grace of their recovered new attire.”
The exhibition at Momart Gallery will be an unmissable opportunity to immerse yourself in Marco Tagliafico’s artistic universe, discovering the creative journey developed during his experience in Basilicata. The setup, designed to dialogue with the exhibition space, will reflect his experimental approach and his continuous exploration between image and matter.
The opening will take place on Friday, April 18, 2025, at 6:00 PM at Momart Gallery.
The exhibition will be open until June 15, 2025, with visiting hours from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM and 4:00 PM to 6:30 PM, every day except Wednesdays and Easter holidays.