At the age of 14, Margherita was diagnosed with a life-threatening allergy to all vegetables and fruits. Almost 20 years later, no discovery or scientific advancement could explain it. Driven by necessity, Margherita transformed her body into a research subject, a medium, and a laboratory, wondering: Why does my immune system recognize the food that should make me healthy as a toxin? What crucial role does the microbiome, our second genome, play in the complex workings of our immune system?
The project involves extensive research, altering diagnostic methods by using fermentation and other food processing techniques. Self-testing within her own body uncovers unique reactions linked to food processing. To comprehend the 'why' behind these allergies, Margherita broadens the concept of diagnosis venturing into a multidimensional space, including power dynamics beyond the individual. The investigation weaves a network of narratives merging immunology, microbiology and evolution, broadened into an exploration of interconnectedness within scientific domains.
P.S. from the curatorial team:
We invited Margherita because of her previous in-depth investigations connected to this season’s theme - specifically in her graduation work “The Skin is an Extension of the Brain”, now permanently installed at Mediamatic, and the later project “Skin Hunger”, dealing with a lack of physical contact and tactility in current times.
Curious to see how an artist with such a haptic and interactive practice with a sharp focus on materials would use the format of a RietveldTV episode, we were thrilled to see Margherita expand and mediate her current research at the intersection of art and science in “Evolving Sensitivities”.