Natalia Lazaro Prevost works in the fields of visual research, mediation and curation. Her practice develops visual investigations that emerge from the dialogue between archives, photography,
and body movement. Her recent works explore the possibilities of body movement through relational objects, as an analytical and active tool to rethink the depiction of body expressions that
live along with mental suffering.
Bio | Research | Photography | Creation | Laboratory prevostlazaronatalia@gmail.com
The body of work explores the mechanisms of oppression throughout the historical depiction of the body in the clinic in different branches of medicine, with a special focus on women and mental health. Acts of Resistance is a performative visual research that explores acts of resistance and liberation that have influenced the historical depiction of mental health. The project poses the potential of body movement as an analytical and active tool for decoding gestures, re-reading non-normative body expressions to allow diverse forms of inhabiting the body in everyday life. The work consists of a video installation, an artist's book (in process) published by La Panera with the support of Sala d'Art Jove, and a body movement laboratory.
The video revisits Trieste's experience during the years of the Italian psychiatric reform, and focuses on the everyday body movement and gestures. Using archive material recorded in the old psychiatric hospital in the 80s, the piece explores the possibilities of circulation and decoding of the diverse bodies that emerged in this context, and how the artistic practice went through them.
Posters from the 80's designed for the events at the old mental hospital in Trieste. Source: Centro di Documentazione Oltre il Giardino.
Archives from the Centro Donna. Source: Centro di Documentazione Oltre il Giardino.
Performances by Velemir Teatro / Accademia della Follia. Source: Centro di Documentazione Oltre il Giardino.
Artworks from the laboratory of arts at the old mental hospital in Trieste. Source: Centro di Documentazione Oltre il Giardino.
Drawings by Aurelia Sansone. Source: Centro di Documentazione Oltre il Giardino.
This video includes extracts of the interviews, essays, and other relevant texts during the research seeking to approach new understandings on mental health suffering to rethink the original oppressive meanings.
Pictures created with artificial intelligence to open up a discussion around the possibilities and limitations of these systems as allies for the motivations of the work.
