I am collaborating with students from the Departments of Physics, Mathematics, Neuroscience, Astrobiology, Molecular Medicine, Biochemical Science, and Electrical Engineering at the Sapienza University of Rome, as well as researchers at CERN and Virgo data analysis group (part of the international team that discovered gravitational waves in 2015), using active processes of scientific research to build a living architecture that the public can enter and inhabit. We worked hard for two months to select a team that was able to work incessantly inside the Mattatoio over the course of more than 90 days of programming, and could develop a research project adhering to their field of investigation. They use the exhibition space as an Athenaeum, carrying out their daily study on a monumental scale. It was certainly a challenge to organise the exhibition from my studio in New York when travel was impossible during lockdown. I rebuilt the interior of Pavilion 9b in 3D—I measured, modelled, and virtually navigated the space for weeks, simulating every detail of the project before proceeding with production and logistics, in full compliance with the new public safety regulations. Over 1,000 sqm of exhibition space were unified by painting the walls a specific grey pantone, as well as the architectural elements, technical tools, and stairs that I designed to accommodate the performances. The project was designed to enhance the imposing verticality of the Mattatoio’s iconic historical architecture, and to visually enlarge the central axis of action. An intricate network of steel cables was installed in the last room to support the sculptures that were suspended several meters above the audience, who is literally immersed in a numerical jungle.

What are you working on at the moment?

It’s a dynamic moment for me. The silence and solitude of months self-quarantined at my studio in Brooklyn generated an introspective environment of reflection, defeat, ideas, uncertainty, dreams, and hope. With the global pandemic and escalating racial tensions across the United States, the need for structural and systemic change has taken on a renewed sense of urgency. Our priorities have rightly shifted, and hopefully we will carry what we are learning and experiencing now into the future. There is a lot of energy in this time, and I think it’s seeped in the psyche of anyone who’s alive and paying attention. As an artist I’ve taken it all in, confronted important questions, and endeavoured to make the most of this strange and surreal period. I’m working simultaneously on several projects, in the final stages of production on a new photographic series, some sculptures, and public art commissions. I have big plans for shows at galleries, fairs, and museums in the USA, Mexico, Asia, and Europe throughout 2021 and into 2022. I’m also building a new studio, which I’m really excited about. The next step in an ongoing process of geographical and intellectual expansion.