The seventeenth-century Palazzina dei Giardini ducali in Modena, just a stone's throw from the Botanical Garden, has been transformed into a "paradise of lost biodiversity," a lush environment with images of flowers, plants, butterflies, birds, and animals of all kinds and species created for the occasion by David Allen Burns and Austin Young, the Californian duo of Fallen Fruit, to suggest a reflection on the natural environment threatened by climate change. 

The visual installations of the exhibition "Paradise Lost," curated by Francesca Fontana, were created inspired by images from historical collections preserved at the Figurine Museum, creating an immersive environment that pervades curtains and walls. Also inspired by historical figurines are the images of tarot cards created for the occasion, with decks that the exhibition visitor can "consult" to explore the beauty and chaos of the world in an attempt to capture its wild nature by delving into universal themes that resonate with the unconscious and perhaps can guide people towards conscious decisions.

The exhibition, which opens on Friday, April 11 at 6 pm and remains open until August 24, is organized by the Ago Modena Cultural Factories Foundation and is part of the project "The Time of Wonder" promoted together with the founding members (Municipality, Unimore, and Modena Foundation) and is also part of the "Alberi Festival. Building the city of trees" program.

The exhibition also takes place at the Figurine Museum, at Palazzo Santa Margherita, where you can admire the original images that inspired the artists, taken from collections mainly published between 1885 and 1925 by historical brands of advertising figurines such as Liebig, Bon Marché, Suchard, and many others. Refined drawings, accompanied by illustrative texts in a simple style, like a small popular encyclopedia, which characterized the figurine albums of the time: from "Symbols of flowers" to "Alpine peaks," from the "Strength of insects" to "Great crops," up to "Butterflies and cupids" or "Children and seashells".