Excroissances, Sublime cliché, MACRO, 2025

The third edition of the Festival of Foreign Academies and Cultural Institutes in Rome, was presented at the MACRO Museo d’Arte Contemporanea Roma, and scheduled from May to August 2025. The exhibition, curated by Saverio Verini, sees the participation of artists who are currently in residence and others who have spent time in Rome and its prestigious cultural institutions, such as Villa Medici.

The Festival also extends into a catalogue, edited by Drago, to trace back through the entire project, with critical contributions by curator Saverio Verini, writer Edoardo Albinati, and art historian Michele Di Monte, together with images of the exhibition set-up.

Iván Argote’s practice focuses on the reformulation of hegemonic narratives from a de-colonial perspective. The reflection on monuments – their impact on public space, their transformation and possibility of reinterpretation over time – was a central concern in the artist’s residency in Rome, as demonstrated by the series of photographs on view.

Produced in 2022 but never previously exhibited, the shots document the results of minimal actions performed by Argote in the area of the Pincian Hill: these actions introduce small botanical elements on sculptures or their bases – “excrescences,” as the title puts it. With this politically subversive gesture the artist reflects on the eternal conflict between nature and culture, envisioning a coexistence of the parts rather than a rigid dichotomy.

– Saverio Verini, curator of Sublime Cliché