Cao Fei. Supernova

26 November 2021 > 24 April 2022

Cao Fei. Supernova

curated by Hou Hanru, Monia Trombetta

An in-depth reflection on the speed of change, the relationship between tradition and future. Her work draws a line that crosses thousands of years and takes us into the next millennium.

Interaction between reality and fantasy, real and virtual, memory and future characterise the exhibition Cao Fei. Supernova, dedicated to a leading figure on the international scene. The show, curated by Hou Hanru and Monia Trombetta, presents, together with two crucial films by the artist, Haze and Fog (2013) and LA Town (2014), works appreciated by international audiences, her latest works: the film Nova (2019), a science fiction film that tells the timeless story of Hongxia, the neighbourhood where Cao Fei lives, reinvented and set in the future; the virtual reality work, The Eternal Wave (2020) which continues the journey begun by the artist with her previous digital works, in which she continues an exploration of the virtual, reality and self-perception with technology; and Isle of Instability, (2020), the latest creation made by the artist in her home in Singapore, in which she explores the psychological repercussions of the pandemic and isolation, a work that explores the social realities of everyday life in this period.

The works on display at MAXXI are part of an articulated installation itinerary that starts from the real and at times private places of the artist’s life, contemporary China, neighbourhood, studio and home and looks out onto a threatening and surreal virtual future. The project is realised in collaboration with the Centro per l’Arte Contemporanea Luigi Pecci in Prato. The partnership will see the simultaneous presentation in Prato at the end of October of an exhibition, curated by Cristiana Perrella, which presents a selection of her other important works.