Upside~Down / Al revés

In Following the Footsteps of the Disappeared, Giuseppe Mario Urso presents Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe and The Statue of Liberty as mirror images. Each wears the clothes and colours of the other and their bases connect via a fragile transparent division.

These two iconic symbols are laden with meaning. For the mothers of the disappeared in Mexico, Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe envelops the unbearable anguish of their loss and extends comfort. The Statue of Liberty has become the symbol of emigration, simultaneously conveying pain for the lost home country and hope for a better life in the new one.

In removing these icons from their traditional pedestals, Urso allows “these two great ladies who stand far apart, yet who share similar values and hopes” to converse with the viewer in a new way. He presents them as “neighbours not strangers, standing in perfect composure, mirroring one another”. He reflects: [This] "upside-down installation… defying gravity, encourages us to come close, reflect, and observe reality with fresh eyes”.

For Giuseppe, their very proximity raises an intimate question: "Are we different or are we the same?"

(Roberta Bacic Conflict Textiles)

Following the Footsteps of the Disappeared

Casa Seminario 12 - Mexico City

Is this the American Dream? by Giuseppe Mario Urso is a witty pastiche using three American icons to question our preconceptions. 

What could be more American than a statue created in Paris, a drink combining coca leaves from the Andes and Kola nuts from Africa, or chewing gum that originated 6000 years ago in Finland? 

Tätäkö on amerikkalainen unelma? on nokkela pastissi, joka käytään kolmea amerikkalaista ikonia kyseenalaistamaan yleisön ennakkokäsityksiä. 

Mikä voisi olla amerikkalaisempaa kuin patsas, joka on tehty Pariisissa, juoma, joka yhdistää kokapensaan lehtiä Andeilta ja kolapähkinöitä Afrikasta, tai purukumi, joka kehitettiin Suomessa yli 6000 vuotta sitten? 

Myymälä2, Helsinki, Finland