Points of Contact: Orfeo Taguiri

General Assembly is pleased to present Points of Contact, an exhibition of new works by Orfeo Tagiuri. In this series Tagiuri explores wounding, renewal, and love. With winged figures locked in embrace and a whimsical alphabet of symbols etched and stained on birch wood, he sanctifies fleeting moments to poignant effect.

In this deeply personal series, each work memorializes the precious early moments of a budding romance: the offering of a humble cigarette, the warmth of a first touch, and the transcendent experience of deep connection to another are all treated with monumental reverence. Tagiuri renders internal and external life on the same plane, portraying feelings alongside memories. The delineation between the two is not immediately distinguishable to the viewer, though recurring symbols such as the hammer, wings, flowers, and nails shed some light.

Indeed, Tagiuri employs these symbols to communicate an internal narrative. Much of that narrative appears to be painful: nails pierce flesh, blood is shed, and tears are wept. Pain from the past remains raw. But within this there is redemption. The works hint that old wounds also offer fertile ground for growth. In “Nightly Choreography” a couple embraces as flowers springs from a wound still fresh with blood. Perhaps a revelation that not all wounds weaken and harden us. Being open with another invites a deeper level of connection, and if we accept it, regeneration. The hammer suggests at the work one has to do to grow. Renewal is possible, but not without the courage to be vulnerable. Above all there is deep sense of gratitude found in the works: gratitude for a partner, and for the simple moments shared together. It is a gratitude that comes not from receiving, but from pausing to experience stillness with another and to grow in that together. The images do not merely memorialize but celebrate that stillness. In that stillness the simple becomes sacred, and Tagiuri’s angelic figures themselves become divine.

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Orfeo Tagiuri (b. 1991, Brookline, MA, USA). Tagiuri’s practice spans painting, drawing, performance, film, woodcarving, animation, and music. He recently completed the IM Residency at Worlingham Hall, Suffolk, where he created several of the works in this series. Tagiuri has previously exhibited and performed internationally, including at Sapling Gallery, London (2021), MACRO, Rome (2021), Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2018) and at Fiorucci Art Trust’s Volcano Extravaganza (2016). In 2020 Orfeo was nominated for Bloomberg New Contemporaries award. He received a BA from Stanford University (2013) and and MFA from Slade School of Fine Art (2019). Tagiuri lives and works in London.