Carolina Mazzolari

Born in 1981

Italy

date of insertion in W.A.D. 12/2023

https://carolinamazzolari.com/

Biography

My name is Carolina Mazzolari, an Italian  artist currently residing and working in London. I earned my diplomas from the Brera Academy of Fine Arts, specializing in life drawing, in Milan in 2005. Between 2001 and 2004, I completed a BA in Textile Design at Chelsea College of Art, London, UAL.   NABA / Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti in Milan from 1999 to 2001.

My artistic practice spans across various mediums, including textile manipulation, printing, painting, photography, video, and performance. In my creative process, I delve into symbols, techniques, and forms, leaving visible traces of my explorations.

My ongoing series, “Emotional Fields,” initially showcased as a solo exhibition at Tristan Hoare Gallery in September 2019, captures the materialization of elusive inner states such as “Love,” “Hesitation,” and “Awe.” These concepts take shape in hand-embroidered dyed maps, characterized by distinctive silver-grey stitchwork interacting with light, creating shifting depths and luminous illusions.

I collaborate with ‘Fine Cell Work,’ a UK-based charity that employs and rehabilitates long-sentenced inmates through embroidery, in the creation of these large hand-sewn works. Each map emanates an intimate quality, as I have spent countless hours physically interacting with the fabrics. The resulting pieces resemble mandalas, conveying love, hesitation, awe, and struggle through a personal language that alludes to deeper human motifs.

My work, both in video and textiles, is part of the permanent collection at the MONA Museum in Tasmania, Australia, and has been featured in significant exhibitions. My artistic journey is primarily inspired by psychological and psychoanalytical texts, adding a nuanced layer to the exploration of human emotions and behaviors.

Curriculum

Born in 1981, Carolina Mazzolari is an artist who currently resides and works in London.

Education:

– 2005: Brera Academy of Fine Arts, specializing in life drawing in Milan.

– 2001-2004: BA in Textile Design / Chelsea College of Art, London. UAL

– 1999-2001: NABA / Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti, Milan. Artistic Practice:

Carolina Mazzolari’s artistic practice spans various mediums, including textile manipulation, printing, painting, photography, video, and performance. Her creative

process involves exploring symbols, techniques, and forms, leaving visible traces of her

exploration. Mazzolari draws inspiration from psychoanalysis, intuition, cognition, human behavior, and social development.

In her ongoing series “Emotional Fields,” initially presented as a solo exhibition at the

Tristan Hoare Gallery in September 2019, Mazzolari captures the materialisation of elusive emotions such as “Love,”  “Hesitation,” and “Awe.”

These ideas take form, in hand-embroidered painted maps, characterized by distinctive silver-grey stitchwork that interacts with light, creating shifting depths and luminous illusions. Carolina collaborates with ‘Fine Cell Work,’ a UK-based registered charity that employs and rehabilitates long-sentenced inmates through embroidery, to create these

large hand-sewn works. Each map exudes an intimate quality, as the artist has spent countless hours physically

interacting with the fabrics. The resulting maps resemble mandalas, conveying love, hesitation, awe, and struggle through a personal language, alluding to deeper human motifs.

Carolina’s works, both in video and textiles, are part of the permanent collection at the MONA Museum in Tasmania, Australia, and have been featured in significant exhibitions.

“As canvas and mixed media contribute to this feminist narrative, textile pieces represent a distinct facet of the avant-garde. They engage in the challenge of visualizing inner states. Mazzolari’s ‘Emotional Fields’ artifacts embody the materialization of elusive states of mind. The figures of ‘Isis’ and ‘Pan’ are textured apparitions – portraits – in a world of otherworldly beings.” — Marina Warner

Selected Exhibitions:

⁃      May 2023 : Mucciaccia gallery Rome

⁃      July 2023 : D3082 gallery DOMUS CIVICA Venice

–       January 2023: Cure3, Bonham’s, London.

–       October 2022: ‘Entre les Monde,’ Lisbon.

–       2022: Royal Academy Summer Exhibition.

–       2021: Human Touch, Sotheby’s, London.

–       2018: Royal Academy 250th Summer Exhibition London

–       2023 Genova, Musei del Mare, Metellino.

–       2023: DOMUS CIVICA, Venice, Italy -Alone, Together.

–       2019: Emotional Fields, Tristan Hoare Gallery, London, UK.

–     2014: Dark Blooms, Creative Doors, Paris, France.

Selected Publications:

– 2023: Gribaudo, Beauty Will Save Us.

– 2020: HAND&LOCK – Embroidery Award, Hand&Lock.

– 2020: ArteJeans – History of a Myth in Art Weaves, Sagep Publishers.

– 2020: CURE3, ArtWise.

– 2020: SHARE, Paola Gribaudo, DisegnoDiverso Publishers.

– 2020: HUMAN TOUCH – Sotheby’s & Fine Cell Work.

– 2019: EMOTIONAL FIELDS, Carolina Mazzolari, Gli Ori Editore.

– 2018: From Kandinsky to Botero, All in a Thread, SKIRA.

– 2009: My Theater of Memory, Ezio Gribaudo, SKIRA.