Through Time and Places: On Fabio Mauri’s Politics of Memory

The seminar explores the work of artist Fabio Mauri (Rome, 1926-2009), emphasising how his artistic practice engaged with spatial contexts as well as personal and collective memories. As a visual artist, publisher, writer, and intellectual within the Italian post-war avant-garde, Mauri’s oeuvre is distinguished by his prophetic insights into the role of screen and projection in contemporary society, alongside his commitment to addressing issues of ideology and memory. Following a general overview of the artist’s life and work, particular attention will be devoted to three pieces produced between 1980 and 2002—Umanesimo/Disumanesimo (Humanism/Inhumanism,1980), Via Tasso (1993), and La Resa (Capitulation, 2002)—each conceived for historically charged sites marked by the trauma of Nazifascism. Drawing on unpublished archival materials made available by the artist’s estate, the seminar will contextualise their creation and examine their critical reception. It will underscore Mauri’s distinctive contribution to a broader shift in contemporary art, from the site-specific experiments of the 1960s to varied approaches that confront the memories embedded in historic locations, at times integrating these memories into the artworks themselves. The talk will conclude with a critical reflection on the challenges associated with the conservation and reactivation of site-oriented works, foregrounding the methodological, ethical, and conceptual considerations raised by the reinstallation of such pieces.

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