Colla Super presents until March 26, ‘Rosa’ by Rosa Anzalone, an exhibition curated by Camilo Oliveira

Words Domenico Costantini

With their delightful colors, incredible natural beauty, and fascinating “otherness,” it is no surprise that flowers and plants have long captivated human beings. They have come to symbolize a gamut of complex human emotions, including hope, delight, love, compassion, gratitude, grief, and loss. The fragility of flowers is a poignant reminder of the fleeting nature of life. Their sensory appeal—to our sight, smell, touch and even, sometimes, taste—brings us into the present moment, and they can affect our well-being in surprisingly healing ways.

'Rosa' by Rosa Anzalone Ph pietra studio
Rosa Anzalone and Camilo Oliveira pietrastudio©

Rosa Anzalone weaves in and around her blooms, cozy, made by diy ideas, with lights and sublime tenderness to heat some corner of the home. Rosa has lived above Colla Super gallery for the past thirty-five years, this little patch of land is clearly a huge source of joy. About a year ago, Camilo Oliveira, the curator of the exhibition, moved in as her neighbor and discovered Rosa’s universe. During their occasional conversations in the apartment stairs, where the neighborhood and its communal glow were rediscovered.

Installation view @pietra.studio

Personally, I imagined it this way: It all stems from an imaginary dialogue between an nephew and an aunt, about how to narrate, how to depict, how to sew, color, magnify “flowers.” On view is the result of Rosa’s blooms, with more than 60 works created over the past year, wordlessly communicate messages, share emotion, paint a mood, or articulate a subtle feeling. Emotional turns capable of capturing petals or shoots abandoned in the closets of the soul and designed for tomorrow’s flowers.

Installation view @pietra.studio