Val Paradiso
Italy
2020
Chiara Avagliano uses memories from her own childhood in Italy to construct the imaginary valley of “Val Paradiso”, an ideal setting for her work, which focuses on the rituals of female friendship, childhood and mythology. The series tells a story with various entry points around a magical lake, based on Lake Tovel which used to turn red during the summer months due to a strange natural phenomenon.
Interweaving science, magic and reality, Chiara Avagliano presents the lake as a potent mythological symbol and explores how the imaginary realms of childhood evolve as we age. Keen to integrate her intimate experience into her production, she re-enacts episodes from her youth with relatives and friends. In this modern fairy tale, she expresses the urgency of recovering what is lost through an infinite cycle of repeated and ultimately transformed memories.
With the support of Istituto Italiano di Cultura
Portfolio
About the artist
Chiara Avagliano was born in Italy in 1988. Her interests lie in the relationship between image, text and object. She mixes different media, blurring the boundaries of her photographic practice. Her work is inspired by natural science, psychoanalysis and informed by autobiographical experience. In an attempt to lessen the distance between science and art, she blends the two elements in a poetic narrative.