The work of American artist Carrie Mae Weems at the Gallerie d'Italia - Turin
16 April 2025
Intesa Sanpaolo opens to the public at the Gallerie d'Italia - Turin the exhibition “Carrie Mae Weems: The Heart of the Matter" dedicated to American artist Carrie Mae Weems, known for her photographic investigations on the topics of cultural identity, sexism and class affiliation.
With her work, Carrie Mae Weems addresses the complexities and injustices of the world, bringing her photography to places often excluded from narratives: artists' studios, plantations in the south of the United States of America, domestic spaces, through to the 'invisible institutions' that arose as places of worship for the black community during oppression, juxtaposed with monuments and museums that have historically been places of exclusion.
At the heart of the exhibition is the new “Preach” project, a world première, commissioned by Intesa Sanpaolo specifically for this exhibition. It is an installation that traces religion and spirituality for American Afro-descendants across generations, celebrating the deep, passionate and joyful forms of worship that characterise the Weems Black Church experience, while denouncing violence and oppression, inseparable elements of this history.
Preach is part of a retrospective consisting of works from the most famous photographic series. The exhibition includes many of Weems' early works, such as Kitchen Table Series (1990) and Museums (2006 - ongoing), a selection of more recent projects, such as Scenes and Takes (2016) and Painting the Town (2021), as well as important video installations including The Shape of Things (2021) and Leave Now! (2022).
Curated by Sarah Meister, and in collaboration with Aperture, the exhibition is part of the EXPOSED Turin Photography Festival. The exhibition has been organised under the patronage of the Piedmont Region and the City of Turin.
Opened in May 2022, the Gallerie d'Italia - Turin is dedicated to photography and video art. The Turin museum, along with those of Milan, Naples and Vicenza, is part of Intesa Sanpaolo's Gallerie d'Italia museum project.
Open to the public from 17 April to 07 September 2025.
For information, please visit the Gallerie d'Italia website.
1. Carrie Mae Weems, Road Sign, 1991–92; from Leave Now!.
Credit: © Carrie Mae Weems and reproduced courtesy of the artist and Gladstone Gallery, New York, Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco, and Galerie Barbara Thumm, Berlin
2. Carrie Mae Weems, Welcome Home, 1978–84; from the series Family Pictures and Stories.
Credit: © Carrie Mae Weems and reproduced courtesy of the artist and Gladstone Gallery, New York, Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco, and Galerie Barbara Thumm, Berlin
3. Carrie Mae Weems, Untitled (Great Expectations), 2016; from the series Scenes and Takes.
Credit: © Carrie Mae Weems and reproduced courtesy of the artist and Gladstone Gallery, New York, Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco, and Galerie Barbara Thumm, Berlin
4. Carrie Mae Weems, Untitled; from the series Preach.
Credit: © Carrie Mae Weems and reproduced courtesy of the artist and Gladstone Gallery, New York, Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco, and Galerie Barbara Thumm, Berlin
