Every day on my way to teach at an international school in Rome, Italy, I passed by an empty hole in a wall that more often than not was a dumping ground for beer bottles and trash. Every day I muttered to myself that this would be an excellent place for artwork. Would it be legal to take over the space? Could I be fined or arrested? What would community members say? What if someone did not like what I put on display? What gives me the right to transform the space? All these questions kept me from any action.
Last year I decided, under cover of darkness, to clean out the space and transform trash to treasure. The area in Rome where the gallery is located is called Testaccio. It is steeped in history, as a few meters away is a literal mountain of broken amphorae dating some 2000 years ago. Because of the amphorae I knew olive oil had to be a part of my design. I decided to give a nod to Rene Magritte and built an olive branch out of paper and wrote in Italian, “This is not an olive branch.” The entire frame that fits into the recessed area was also made from upcycled cardboard. In total, I spent zero money and countless hours of designing and creating. After all, it could be stolen or tossed in the trash after day 1. Late one night last summer, I carried the frame and my nod to Rene Magritte and gave birth to the newest gallery in Rome. I called it “SustainabITALY.”
After the first weekend, it was stolen. I was upset, but savored the idea that someone loved it so much that it is still hanging on their wall as I write this. I made another one, more abstract out of a garden hose and balloons. It was also destroyed and was defaced with a swastika. This is unfortunately too common in Italy. I became invigorated as I was/am fighting the fascists. The community assisted with the gallery and hopefully appreciate the transformation.
As of last week, I turned the gallery into a FLAG called Piccola Galleria l’Arte Gratuita. Anyone can make, share and take art.