What is Karina Castro's exhibition about?

Filippo Pagliani and Michele Rossi: "Castro's visual investigation stems from the desire to question oneself on the current historical period. In recent years, the artist has captured images of different landscapes, places and environments, uniquely united by the presence of man, to reflect on her responsibilities with respect to scientific progress.

The exhibited works become a tool to investigate certain issues, question ourselves and push ourselves to ask what our position is with regard to technological progress and the ways in which man and nature coexist.

The exhibition invites us to reflect on the illusoriness of appearances and to question our consciences regarding environmental issues".

What will the public see?

Filippo Pagliani and Michele Rossi: “The exhibition brings together a selection of photographs taken from the original corpus of research, taken between Italy, Switzerland and Portugal.

A first group recounts scientific and technological progress, from the era of fossil energy to the new era of sustainable energy, while the second describes the various elements of nature currently threatened by human action.

Among Karina Castro's most significant works are PV Floating technology, which portrays the first high-altitude floating solar station that is expected to produce up to 50 percent more electricity than a lowland solar park; and Rio Douro Estuary, which photographs a large bird reserve, near the mouth of the Douro river, in Portugal, for years threatened by a music festival that took place a few meters away, interfering with the balance of local flora and fauna”.

To what extent are we able to read the relationship between the human species and the planet?

Filippo Pagliani and Michele Rossi: "Karina Castro's visual research does not claim to offer exhaustive answers to the questions raised, rather it hopes to highlight contradictions and stereotypes of the relationship between man and nature, with the order to tickle consciences through suggestive images.

The artist's shots show us that distinguishing virtuous behaviors from those that are not is only apparently immediate and linear, because it is dictated by visual-conceptual associations which often guide value judgments in everyday life .

The truth is that only an in-depth study, such as the one that accompanies the artist's visual research, of the events concerning the relationship between man and nature can allow us to move towards a clearer understanding of the topics covered".

In 2017 you opened the Park Hub. What is it about?

Filippo Pagliani and Michele Rossi: “Park Hub was born from the desire to open up a space of contamination with other disciplines that stimulate design and contribute to the fervor that the city of Milan offers.

The programming, focused on the promotion of young talents, is structured in fixed appointments linked to the world of design and publishing, such as the Milan Design Week and BookCity, together with the Park Stage - monthly conversations in which professionals from various sectors tell each other - and at art exhibitions.

Authorship and research go hand in hand in this programming aimed at creating social value for our community, with a view to a renewal of design and thought.

It is a space open to everyone, from the Park Associati team to the entire Milanese, Italian and international community that gravitates around the studio".

In these six years of activity, how many events have you organized?

Filippo Pagliani and Michele Rossi: “Since 2017, in the Park Hub we have organized more than thirty events, including conversations, exhibitions and presentations.

Among the most important appointments we mention the exhibition hosted on the occasion of the Milan Design Week of 2019 with an installation entitled Insecure, created by the designer duo Žan Kobal andWeixiaoShen, and the panel talk Publishing and architecture in Italy, on the occasion of Bookcity 2022, a discussion on the different editorial lines with which the magazines talk about architecture, crossing Italy from North to South, together with the representatives of Stoà, Pantheon and ARK”.

Why, in your opinion, is it important to invest in culture, without asking for anything in return?

Filippo Pagliani and Michele Rossi: “Park Associati develops projects through a culture of dialogue that has always characterized the studio's open approach.

A cultural space seemed to be the most natural way to open up to new stimuli, from which the team can also benefit.

The Park Hub programming is dedicated to experimentation, research and the promotion of young talents, with the aim of favoring contamination with other disciplines, different but tangential to design for vision and creativity, from which to draw inspiration.

Investing in this sector is a way to create social value and promote cultural growth, also through collaboration between several entities, both public and private".