“Intra:” Artist Michela Magazzù invited visitors to step inside Pezzolo homes and past
All photos by Giuseppe Spuria.
On April 5, throughout the village of Pezzolo, the exhibition Intra by emerging artist Michela Magazzù invited visitors on a journey through the layers of memory, place, and storytelling.
Tucked into the abandoned homes of Pezzolo, Magazzù’s site-specific exhibition brought forgotten spaces back to life. The title (Sicilian for “inside”) reflects both the physical setting and the introspective nature of the work: a series of diptychs installed directly within empty domestic spaces of the village.
Magazzù, a recent graduate in Painting from the Academy of Fine Arts in Reggio Calabria, came up with the concept for Intra as a culmination of her thesis on “Re-enchantment.” Each painting was inspired by stories and encounters during Magazzù’s 2-week residency in Pezzolo in December 2024.
Visitors arriving in Pezzolo for the exhibit were given a map full of symbols which they then followed to find the paintings scattered in homes throughout the village. As they journeyed through the physical and emotional space of the exhibit, they encountered “guardians,” over 30 local volunteers who spent the evening accompanying each painting, ready to share the story of the image, the home, or even the village. In some spaces, tea, cookies, and music were shared, echoing the welcoming environment that drew Magazzù to Pezzolo in the first place: “‘ntrasi intra,” she was told repeatedly. “Come inside.”
By placing her art within crumbling interiors rather than a gallery, Magazzù beautifully blurred the lines between canvas and context, allowing each piece to absorb the spirit of the space it inhabited.
Intra isn’t just an exhibition—it’s a gentle reclamation. It invited guests to walk through memories of the past, and discover something profoundly alive in the present.