Saper Verdere – April 2009
This curiosity cabinet is an exploration of the intersection between art and science, using traditional photography, found objects, biological material and mixed media. Created in the tradition of the Wunderkammer; encyclopedic collections of types of objects whose categorical boundaries were in Renaissance Europe yet to be defined- objects included belonging to natural history, geology, archeology, ethnography, historical relics and works of art. Each cabinet of wonder was defined by the whims of the collector, therefore this one reflects the scientific experience I had in collecting and organizing the objects and animals.
The name of the show Saper vedere an Italian phrase that translates as “knowing how to see” was a concept used by Leonardo da Vinci as the basis of his in-depth study of the creative power of humans and nature. This collection demonstrates how humans deliberately manipulate our environments, and our relationships with other organisms in order to be voyeurs of the wonder of nature. In really ‘knowing how to see’ our natural world perhaps we will be inspired to preserve what we have left, and I don’t mean in formaldehyde!
