Giuseppe Barilaro (born in Catanzaro on July 16, 1988 - lives and works in Carrara) prefers the manipulation of "virgin" materials, simultaneously resistant and ductile, to trace the path of life on the material itself; and it is with wood that, influenced by these characteristics, he has established an imprint still present today. In his works, it would be reductive to study the forms without considering their correlation with the "substance", the true protagonist of the work itself. The artist's interventions on the support surface include: burning the wood, peeling and engraving; treatment with burnt acrylics, aimed at revealing the soul, energy, and past of the depicted figure. His obsessive search for a truth hidden beneath the skin and behind appearances, transcending a binary prejudice linked to our beliefs, manifests primarily in an academic sense. This is evident in the paradoxical representation of a "Christ exposed to Confession" in a work that earned him first place at the National Arts Award - M.I.U.R., Painting section. Progressively, the artist moves away from a "narrative" style, preferring basic, almost archaic forms and compositions that evoke the firmness and sacredness typical of icons. To contrast this softness, a blow is struck on the support, becoming more brutal and decisive, eviscerating a hidden truth. The result of the works is a true dialogue between the self and its peculiarities, in a general and redundant conflict, incapable of being exhausted over time.

Giuseppe Barilaro comments on his presence at the MacS in Catania as follows: "Magical and incisive, the exhibition at the MacS lays the foundations of a well-defined and mature research. It can be said that my artistic rebirth starts from the MacS." And he adds: "I offer a moment of reflection, those who look at a painting dedicate some time, dedicate a minute, a small instant to reflection and for once, perhaps, in life, decide to detach themselves from the external world. My poetics consist in finding something new within the material every time. I tear and destroy, I cannot outline a thought or a way of working, in the imperfections of my gesture I always discover the charm of something unknown."

"The choice to host Giuseppe Barilaro at the MacS responds to our mission of promoting artists who, through the changing contemporary languages, embody the power and archetypal strength of universal symbols and myths. Giuseppe Barilaro is an artist capable of transforming matter into emotion, image into pure energy. The MacS is pleased to present the exhibition of an artist who represents a rare example of mastery, technique, and audacity: an author who knows how to transform, disturb, illuminate," declares Giuseppina Napoli (Director of the MacS Museum).

With Giuseppe Barilaro, on Friday, September 26, at 8:00 PM, at the MacS (in Via S. Francesco D'Assisi, 30 - corner of via Crociferi, Catania) there will be: the Director of the MacS (Giuseppina Napoli) and the curators (Adriano Pricoco, Federico Rui, and Ornella Trovato).