Marco Noris: «With painting you confront the subject from emotion, not from the intellect»

Xevi Bonell · 12.11.2019 · Last update: 21.06.2026 · Translation: AI · Project Refugium, refugia · Topics: hora nova, xevi bonell, press, interviews, refugium refugia, mume, exile, border

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The original interview by Xevi Bonell was published in Catalan in Hora Nova on 12 November 2019, on the occasion of the exhibition «Refugium, refugia» at the MUME (La Jonquera): horanova.cat. This English version is an AI translation for my personal archive.

The Italian painter and draughtsman presents «Refugium, refugia» at the MUME, a show on view until 3 February.

Exile, a difficult subject to address?
It is a subject that will always remain open. That is why I use historical images, in a space together with elements of the present. Although my work was initially local, I could not turn my back on contemporary reality. We cannot be blind to what is happening in the Mediterranean.

A political problem?
Political subjects are addressed from the intellect, with research, studies… The emotional part is missing. Through painting you confront the subject from emotion, not from the intellect.

Is the protagonist the space or the refugee?
The relationship between the two. Fleeing back through where they had escaped. It is not only the place, it is also the transit. I would like it to be the relationship between the person and the place. Past, present and future. Between the refugee who has left out of necessity and someone like me, who am Italian and live here, there is a common feeling: uprootedness.

You use more than 120 m² of paper.
In the old days the painter painted the picture where everything happened. Now it is a dialogue between pieces and space. It is a total physical experience. The hanging paper has a theoretical, conceptual origin and creates an experience.

What would you like someone to feel when they visit your exhibition?
That they feel uncomfortable. That they question things, that something stirs in them. That they find a place of silence where reflection on «the refugee condition» can germinate and allow them to reflect.

Links

Read the interview at horanova.cat

Backlinks

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Marco Noris: «With painting you confront the subject from emotion, not from the intellect»

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