Arca Milano opens its doors, exhibitions and concerts to the multifunctional space

Art and culture as well as food and music, including exhibitions, concerts, talks and workshops, in the name of proximity between regions, and interdependence of languages. A manifesto for sharing experiences, for Arca Milano, a new multifunctional space in a city increasingly determined to capture the thread of discourse on dynamism and initiative, interrupted by the pandemic and lockdowns. Arca is located at Via Rimini 38, at the headquarters of the CAP Group, a public company managing integrated water services for the Metropolitan City of Milan, and will open its doors on January 22, 2023, from 12 to midnight, for a long day during which to see, hear and even taste.

The outside is really a work of art. the structure he designed Claudio Lucchin and associated architects In the territory of an old shed, inspired by the standards of sustainable architecture and winking at the rhythms of tumors a la Piet Mondrian, with a monolithic shell of lava stone, 30 meters high for six floors and one underground, with an area of ​​11,250 square meters. Inside, between the offices and laboratories, there is also a large multifunctional area, which will host heterogeneous initiatives aimed at the public.

In the exhibition area, on January 22, the group exhibition “Corpse Shelter” sponsored by Giorgia Massari and Sarah Paroliniwith young artists Eduardo Manzoni, Federica Balconi, Lucrezia Costa, Mauro Serra, Silvia Ontario, Stefano Ferrari. In the bistro and club areas a DJ is located next to it Abstract, Anna Molly Soundstem, Blinky, Bulma Brief, Giacomo Fiorani, Lovendo, Mile, Bonnie, Virginino, Insecurity Syndrome, Gigi Massine. We arrived Lorenzo RubinoArca Milano co-founder, and curators Georgia Massari and Sarah Parolini, to tell us more.

How did the idea of ​​opening a new space dedicated to multilingual dialogue arise and develop?

Lorenzo Rubino «Culture, especially in Milan, has many meanings: concerts, exhibitions, design and fashion. This is why, when we saw the space and its potential, we thought about all the ways different forms of art and culture could coexist while still maintaining their uniqueness. With this goal and with the basic idea that culture and dialogue are two sides of the same coin, we decided to create a temporary permanent exhibition capable of engaging every idea and artistic thought »

How were the artists chosen for the first exhibition and why? What topics are covered?

Giorgia Massari, Sarah Parolini «For the first Arca exhibition, we chose the theme “Refuge of Bodies”, with a particular focus on the concept of refuge, the concept – from the most realistic point of view – as a basic need for survival, human and animal, and from a spiritual point of view, as an abstract looking place Every living being has a home.

The exhibition “Shelter of Bodies” investigates the concept of life and highlights, through deconstruction, the artificiality of human and animal dwellings, simultaneously reflecting the processes that link the natural world with the man-made world. A person builds a house in order to defend himself from beasts and bad weather; In the same way an animal builds a den to defend itself from any danger. The moment of collision, dictated by man’s arrogance and need for control, tends to partially reverse direction, generating an unresolvable interdependence, with man dependent on animals for love, nourishment, entertainment and fear, while the animal, despite its autonomy, is dependent on animals. Nature, today more than ever in need of constant care and protection, is man-made.

Starting with the theme itself, we chose to engage the artists Edoardo Manzoni (1993), Federica Balconi (1999), Lucrezia Costa (1996), Mauro Serra (1986), Silvia Ontario (1996) and Stefano Ferrari (1996): six active young Italian contemporary artists In the area of ​​\u200b\u200bMilan and Bergamo, who, in different meanings, express the nuances inherent in the concept of life.

The “Corpse Shelter” works express the various nuances created by this process, emphasizing in some cases the powerful synthetic and exhausting component, and in others, its unstable nature. In the context of the place in which they are exhibited, that is, not exhibited, the works dialogue with each other through a playful and at the same time intimately reflective language, underpinned by a collective visual harmony.

The concept of refuge is then translated into the very nature of the place – the Arca Milano – that is, a multifunctional cultural space, contributing to the redevelopment of the peripheral area of ​​Romulo, now home to important universities (IULM, NABA) and other important spaces (SuperStudio Maxi). At the same time, the name of the place—the Ark—inevitably refers to Noah’s Ark, the biblical vehicle that saved species, a place of refuge during the end of the world. Furthermore, the building itself, an ambitious zero-emissions architectural project – designed by Claudio Lucchin & Architetti Associati, headquarters of the CAP Group – develops horizontally, in fact assuming the shape of a ship sailing on water that will soon be integrated into the exterior project, Brings man back to nature.

The project, designed and made by young people, also for the technical part, chooses to entrust the direction to us, two young curators. Therefore, our choice continues on the same wavelength: the choice to promote young and emerging contemporary art ».

How will Arca’s activities continue?

Lorenzo Rubino “Arca’s activities will continue in the same spirit as they began. With concerts in the club area and exhibitions in the event space, but not only. Even conversations will have their place, just as the bistro will thrive in both food, drink and music, thanks to the center console that will host on opening day (January 22) 10 DJs taking turns ».