Signal from the Ground
Comunicato stampa
Signal from the Ground
Matter, Art, Ecology and Extraction. From the Alps to Nauru
Jun 5 – Oct 25, 2026
Tue – Sun 10am – 6pm
via Castel Belasi 38010, Campodenno (Tn)
Opening: Jun 5, 6pm
Artists: Jessie Kleemann (Greenland), Mary Mattingly (USA), Kauw Tsitsi (Nauru), Tedo Rekhviashvili (Georgia), Patricia Jacomella Bonola (Switzerland), Ron Laboray (USA), Sylvia Grace Borda (Canada), Khaled Hafez (Egypt), Dorian Batycka (Poland), Nina E. Schönefeld (Germany), Stefano Cagol (Italy), Sergey Kishchenko (Russia), Elena Lavellés (Spain), Luis Carrera-Maul (Mexico), Aldo Valentinelli (Italy), Osvaldo Maffei (Italy), Giancarlo Norese (Italy), Iv Toshain (Austria).
Curated by Stefano Cagol
On June 5, 2026, World Environment Day, Castel Belasi – Center for Contemporary Art and Eco Thought in Campodenno (Trento, Italy) presents the exhibition Signal from the Ground, on view until October 25 as an official satellite event of the National Pavilion of the Republic of Nauru at the 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia.
Creating an unexpected bridge between the Alps and Nauru – the world's smallest island nation and a symbol of ecological vulnerability and colonial extractivism – the exhibition reflects on ecology and geology. It prompts visitors to confront critical contemporary issues such as ecosystem degradation, overdevelopment, and the exploitation of natural resources and rare earth elements, which increasingly dictate global balances.
Spanning the noble floors of the castle, the exhibition path unfolds through the works of nearly twenty international contemporary artists featured both within and beyond the Biennale pavilion. Among them are the Greenlandic Jessie Kleemann, the American Mary Mattingly, the Georgian Tedo Rekhviashvili, and Kauw Tsitsi, a poet and musician born in Nauru, who participates with a meaningful lyric poem. The artworks are placed in dialogue with a selection of an equal number of rarely exhibited scientific specimens of "useful minerals" tied to the millenary regional history of mining, sourced from the Collections of MUSE – Science Museum of Trento. In response to complex, alarming threats to our future – such as the severe risk of land degradation by 2050 highlighted by UNESCO and the United Nations – the artists offer profound, evocative perspectives, fostering cultural and social awareness.
The project is complemented by a Project Room featuring works by emerging artists alongside textual contributions from young curators. Furthermore, in September, a masterclass from the We Are the Flood series tailored for participants under 35 will be led by Filipino artist Ronald Ventura, taking place between MUSE and Castel Belasi.
The exhibition is organized in collaboration with MUSE – Science Museum of Trento, a cultural partner of Castel Belasi since September 2024.
Castel Belasi – Center for Contemporary Art and Eco Thought is an institution of the Municipality of Campodenno, open to the public since 2021 within a late 13th-century medieval monumental site. The exhibition programming aligns with the enduring message embedded in the castle's exquisite 15th and 16th-century frescoes, which present a highly contemporary warning regarding the consequences of human choices. Stefano Cagol has served as founding director since 2023.
