Marango: Alessandro Piangiamore

From May 1st to June 14th, 2018, Casa Italiana Zerilli-Marimò hosted the exhibition Marango, where MQ Architecture played a key role as the exhibition designer. The showcase highlighted fourteen pieces from Alessandro Piangiamore’s series’ Ieri Ikebana, La cera di Roma, Belvedere, and Primavera Piangiamore, alongside a new site-specific work from his ongoing project, Tutto il vento che c’è (All the Wind that Blows).

Titled Marango, the exhibition drew its name from the Sicilian word for Amaranth, a color derived from a flower originating in South America, historically associated with textile production in ancient Mesoamerican cultures. Amaranth played a symbolic role in Piangiamore’s Ieri Ikebana’s compositions, reflecting the interplay between materials, tradition, and nature, characteristic of the artist’s oeuvre.

In this exhibition, Piangiamore curated a dialogue among the works, presenting them in composite installations that offered a fresh interpretation of their visual impact and mutual meanings. Leveraging materials commonly found in everyday life and embracing a relinquishment of control over the physical outcome in favor of conceptual ideas, the artist drew inspiration from the lexicon of Arte Povera, paying homage to his predecessors. As exhibition designers, our role was integral in crafting an environment that enhanced the narrative coherence and visual impact of Piangiamore’s diverse and thought-provoking works.

Artist: Alessandro Piangiamore Exhibition Designer, Technical Assistance and Coordination: Miguel Quismondo Location: Casa Italiana Zerilli-Marimo, New York, NY Completion Date: 2018 Photography: Alexa Hoyer