The second book in the Ultralibri series, Stanze in a certain way narrates eight years in the creative evolution of the duo of artists and directors Gianluca and Massimiliano De Serio, who recently presented SPACCAPIETRE, the only Italian title in competition in Venice Days at the Venice Film Festival 2020.

The book offers an experience full of theatrical, poetic and cinematographic projects dedicated to the Somali lands and to the critique of Italy’s colonial past, linking old and new subjugations. The volume includes, among others, a contribution by Andrea Del Boca and historical essays by Luca Ciabarri and Gabriele Proglio.

Gianluca and Massimiliano De Serio were born in Turin in 1978. They have worked together since 1999 as visual artists, screenwriters and film directors. Over the years they have directed short films, documentaries and produced installations that have participated in the most important national and international film festivals and various exhibitions.

“Just as we saw a moment ago, even before opening it, this volume offered a shape and a colour: a green square immediately evokes a gaming table and it is here that I am now going to arrange the various and changing faces of a solitaire”. Giulio Paolini, author of this artist’s book, guides the reader through his works from the beginning, introducing him to a more “strictly personal” knowledge of his enigmatic work. In addition to a rich bibliography, the book includes historical texts by the artist and others that have never been published before.

The book is the unusual catalogue of the exhibition, curated by Dede Auregli and Peter Weiermair, held at the Galleria d’Arte Moderna in Bologna from 26 January to 18 March 2001. The exhibition included the works of eight young artists presented by eight critics, interpreting the rooms of the Villa delle Rose and allowing each work a significant presence. Eight agile booklets make up the whole catalogue, placed in a box that holds and collates them. The pairs of artists/critics involved in the project are: Davide Bertocchi and Claudia Zanfi, Piero Cattani and Fabriano Fabbri, Andrea Chiesi and Valeria Tassinari, Flavio Favelli and Stefano Gualdi, Stefania Galegati and Serena Simoni, Luca Piovaccari and Sabina Ghinassi, Stefano Scheda and Alice Rubbini, Italo Zuffi and Silvia Grandi. Each volume includes images, a list of works and a detailed biography.