Tuesday March 19th, 2024
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Genesis by Caroline Berzi Shows Us the Beauty of Recycling Through 3D Compositions

Artist Caroline Berzi's first solo exhibition, Genesis, opens the conversation on our liability in a consumer culture by using discarded materials to create intricate paintings.

Staff Writer

Genesis by Caroline Berzi Shows Us the Beauty of Recycling Through 3D Compositions

The worst habits are the ones we take for granted, and in a consumer culture, there's a lot to take for granted. We buy too much food that gets thrown out, or clothes we never wear. When waste becomes routine, we lose touch with what we have - focusing only on the act of consumption. Helping us to reconnect with our humanity is artist Caroline Berzi, whose first solo exhibition, Genesis, opens the conversation on our liability in a consumer culture by using discarded materials to create intricate paintings - a conversation she had become more than familiar with after a 7-year career as a financial analyst.

Hosted by Motion Art Gallery, Genesis was originally slated for a live art show in March until the pandemic struck the world. Since then, it has been moved to June, with a private viewing booking system replacing the typical opening reception. During a worldwide health crisis that is, in part, caused by our collective consumption - at cinemas, malls or infamously wasteful restaurants - it's a fitting moment for Berzi's exhibition. There we can see 3D compositions made up of hundreds of individual miniature plastic sculptures, repurposed into fields of colourful flowers.

"My intention is to render value to discarded durable materials," Berzi said. "And create an exceptional experience for people which is also educational in its meaning."

And it's a practical education, at that. By looking at her recycled artwork, we learn first-hand how simple it would be to use our discarded materials for a new purpose - how we can refill glass bottles, or shop with a reusable bag. How we can stop taking our consumerist habits for granted, and instead look to reconnect with what we already have.

Caroline Berzi is a recent graduate from SACI Florence with a Post-Bac in Studio Art. Although she had participated in group exhibitions such as Differently Melodies with Ubuntu (2019) and The Fleeting Other in Florence (2019), 2020's Genesis marks her first solo outing. Book your private viewing before July 10th at @motionartgallery's Instagram through the link in bio.