Judit Kristensen and Giulia Messina at Coulisse Gallery

Coulisse Gallery proudly presents ‘Human Drama’ a duo exhibition with Judit Kristensen and Giulia Messina, curated by Domenico De Chirico. The exhibition takes its title from a song of the same name by the band Planningtorock, capturing a spectrum of moods from melancholic, bruised skies to vibrant expressions, creating an allegorical journey that is both harrowing and exhilarating. Beauty is rediscovered, enriched by the intense cravings of libido—the primal psychic energy driving desires and sexual impulses. Charles Baudelaire, in his work ‘My Heart Laid Bare’, wrote: ‘There are in every man, at every hour, two simultaneous populations, one towards God, the other towards Satan. The invocation to God, or spirituality, is a desire to rise in rank, that of Satan or animality, it is a joy to descend.’ Inspired by this insight, contemporaries Judit Kristensen and Giulia Messina have formed what they term a ‘prophetic tribe with burning pupils’, establishing a salacious and unprecedented worldview. In their artistic universe, the tremble of sensitivity merges with the sharpness of acumen; flesh binds tightly to spirit, and infernal forces set the heavens ablaze, depicting a cosmos deeply imbued with the nuances of the current era. ‘Human Drama’, as envisioned by the artists, thus stands as a manifesto for a society in which liberated libido steers us towards a more expressive and satisfying existence, softening previously irreconcilable dualities.

Judit Kristensen explores themes linked to the complexities of desire, challenging entrenched social norms. Her art oscillates between dense and ethereal textures, capturing transient shimmers and nuanced shades. She immerses herself in spaces dominated by liminal colors, uncovering unseen depths and celebrating the sheer act of existence. These explorations, reminiscent of Scandinavian modernism, oscillate between vibrancy and the subdued, dissecting both the fire and the ashes of human emotion. Kristensen’s work is a visual extension of Michel de Montaigne’s philosophy, which recognizes the transient nature of all things, advocating for the liberation of the human mind from dogmatic slumbers and promoting a skepticism-enriched tolerance.

Conversely, Giulia Messina, is the first artist to create paintings using water-based markers. Her unique approach involves capturing the essence of “performative parties,” where the dynamics of a gathering transform into art. She meticulously documents interactions at these events, translating them into her works that probe the deeper psychological dimensions of human relations. Her art, characterized by vibrant, saturated colors and distorted still-life compositions, reveals a psychedelic exploration of absurdity. Echoing existentialist themes by philosophers like Martin Heidegger and Jean-Paul Sartre, Messina places the self within the continuum of human existence, emphasizing personal freedom and responsibility in shaping identity. Through her work, she considers the body as a fertile terrain for identity exploration, resonating with Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s views on bodily experiences shaping our perceptions of self and our interactions with others.

Text and curation by Domenico De Chirico, translated into English by Jeanette Gunnarsson.

Domenico de Chirico is an independent curator from Italy. Born in Terlizzi, Bari, Italy in 1983, he lives and works in Milan. He graduated with honors in Foreign Languages and Literatures from the University of Bari (UNIBA), with a final dissertation dealing with Comparative History of Art in European Countries (with a particular focus on Dan and Lia Perjovschi). From 2011 until 2015 he was a professor in Visual Culture and Trend Research at Milan’s European Institute of Design (IED). He collaborates with a number of international artists, galleries, institutions, art fairs, art prizes, and magazines worldwide.