HOME
Fondazione MAST presents the seventh edition of FOTO/INDUSTRIA, the Biennial of Photography on Industry and Work, dedicated this year to the theme of HOME. Under the artistic direction of Francesco Zanot, the Biennial features ten exhibitions across seven venues in Bologna’s historic centre, exploring the home as a space of identity, belonging, and transformation.
At the same time, the solo exhibition of Jeff Wall titled Living, Working, Surviving, curated by Urs Stahel will be open at MAST Galleries featuring large-scale lightboxes and black-and-white prints that portray the essence of postmodern life and late-capitalist society. The exhibition will be open until March 8, 2026.
“Home is a physical structure and a major industrial challenge, but also a cultural and emotional space,” says Artistic Director Francesco Zanot. “Exploring it helps us understand the complexity of contemporary life.”
Photographers and artists have long worked with the theme of the home, analysing its connections with architecture, psychology, economy, politics, and even climate change, which demands new design approaches. The exhibitions of FOTO/INDUSTRIA 2025—all with free admission—offer a visual chronology on the theme of the home, from the early 20th century to modern times and the opportunity to observe and study the work of a selection of international artists (from emerging talents to leading figures on a global stage) through ten exhibitions that span over a century and explore diverse geographies:
“Prut” by Matei Bejenaru (Romania, 1966) at Palazzo Bentivoglio
An ongoing project documenting villages along the Prut River, a natural boundary of the new political Europe. The images capture daily life and historical change in a region suspended between past and present.
“A Small Guide to Homeownership” by Alejandro Cartagena (Mexico, 1977) at Palazzo Vizzani
A thirteen-year investigation into Monterrey’s suburbanisation, exposing the contradictions of homeownership as a symbol of stability within fragmented, profit-driven urban expansion.
“Looking for Palestine” by Forensic Architecture (UK) at Palazzo Bentivoglio
The London-based collective reconstructs the destruction of Palestinian villages since 1948 through maps, films, and virtual models, in collaboration with Amnesty International, the UN, and international courts.
“My Dream House is not a House” by Julia Gaisbacher (Austria, 1983) at Fondazione Collegio Venturoli
A reflection on architect Eilfried Huth’s 1970s participatory housing project in Graz, featuring photographs, films, and archival materials that celebrate community-based design.
“Popihuise” by Vuyo Mabheka (South Africa, 1999) at Fondazione Collegio Venturoli
Inspired by a childhood game, Mabheka blends personal memory and collective imagery to explore home as both material and emotional construct.
“Södrakull Frösakull” by Mikael Olsson (Sweden, 1969) at Fondazione Collegio Venturoli
A study of two modernist homes by Bruno Mathsson, seen as experiments in the relationship between individual, architecture, and natural environment.
“Quarta casa” by Moira Ricci (Italy, 1977) at MAMbo
The artist’s first retrospective, spanning twenty-five years of work on home, memory, and identity. Ricci’s practice reinterprets family and archival photography to examine collective and personal history in the Maremma region.
“Some Homes” by Ursula Schulz-Dornburg (Germany, 1938) at National Art Gallery of Bologna
Six photographic series from the 1960s to 2000s across the Netherlands, Georgia, Russia, Turkey, Iraq, and Indonesia, documenting homes that express both survival and cultural identity.
“Microcosmo Sinigo” by Sisto Sisti (Italy, 1906–1981) at Fondazione del Monte di Bologna e Ravenna
A portrait of the Montecatini company village in Sinigo (Merano) between 1935 and 1950. Over 600 images reveal the life of a self-contained industrial community.
“No Rest for the Wicked” by Kelly O’Brien (UK, 1985) at Spazio Carbonesi
Exploring domestic labour, gender, and class, O’Brien intertwines personal and social narratives to highlight the invisible work that sustains home life.
"Living, Working, Surviving" by Jeff Wall (Vancouver, 1946) at MAST Galleries
Proposing 28 works, including lightboxes and large-format colour, and black-and-white prints, created between 1980 and 2021. These images are dedicated to the broad spectrum of humanity, everyday life, and the simple gestures of those who work, move, and carry out daily tasks and activities. They appear to be candid snapshots of people’s lives, yet in reality, they are enigmatic and complex scenes depicting events that never occurred—indefinite and deliberately ambiguous compositions that invite the viewer to immerse themselves, reflect, and discover meaning.
Fondazione MAST
Fondazione MAST (Manifattura di Arti, Sperimentazione e Tecnologia) is a non-profit organisation founded in Bologna in 2013 to support shared economic, social, and cultural growth. MAST is an international-level cultural centre that provides advanced welfare services for employees of the Coesia industrial group. It also offers the community free cultural activities centred on the arts, as well as photography focusing on industry and work.
For media requests: press@fondazionemast.org
