Piazza del Chaffleo, RADIS, Bene Vagienna, 2026

In 2018, in a video, the artist explored the many meanings of the verb ‘chafleare’, which he had coined. ‘Chafleare’ is a neologism, the definition of which remains deliberately open: rather than erecting a monument to celebrate a figure or event from the past, Iván Argote transforms ‘the roundabout’ into a square named after a new word, destined to take on meaning gradually, depending on how people use this space.  If people come here to kiss, ‘chafleare’ will mean kissing; if they come here to demonstrate, it will mean demonstrating. The work overturns the logic of the traditional monument – which decides once and for all who and what to commemorate – and returns it to those who live in and pass through the square, transforming it into an open question about how, both symbolically and physically, we choose to be together.

For the third edition of Radis, Piazza del Chafleo takes shape in Bene Vagienna with a project that invites visitors to hide amongst the trees, share moments of play and reflection, and contemplate the surrounding landscape.

Piazza del Chafleo comprises three sculptural elements made of pink concrete: a monumental staircase that allows visitors to view the landscape from a new perspective; a curved structure reminiscent of the remains of the nearby Roman amphitheatre, designed as a meeting place; and a fountain in which water is present only if one can imagine it. Three round plaques, arranged on the grass like traditional manhole covers, spark the imagination, suggesting instructions for a game played at a distance. Three small inscriptions on the benches – “Do you remember the first time we ‘chaffled’ here?” – invite everyone to interpret, in their own way, the meaning of the verb ‘chafleare’.

As in all squares, there are pigeons in Piazza del Chafleo too: the oversized golden sculpture of a pigeon, resting in a relaxed pose amongst the trees in the square, is dedicated to them. The pigeon is a subject dear to Iván Argote, who has chosen it as a symbol of redemption for all marginalised individuals. In this instance, it is the square’s first inhabitant and suggests to visitors a possible way of using its facilities.

All the elements that make up Piazza del Chafleo function in the same way as the invented verb ‘chafleare’, inviting visitors to explore the potential of the imagination as a tangible force for change. It is a profoundly transformative project, drawing on numerous references from the history of art and architecture, such as the utopian vision of Florentine radical architecture and the playgrounds designed by the Japanese-born American sculptor Isamu Noguchi, and the colours and volumes of the Mexican architect Luis Barragán.