- Art & Design
There is no Italian history without the Etruscans. They were the first great civilisation on the Italian peninsula and had their heyday in the seventh and sixth centuries BC. Until mid-September, the Palazzo dei Priori in Volterra (Tuscany) is the venue for ESSENTIA, an exhibition organised by KALPA Galleries. There, the work in wood by British artist Eleanor Lakelin enters into a dynamic interplay with archaeological finds from the Guarnacci Etruscan Museum.
Until 15 September, you can see how remnants of Etruscan culture converge with contemporary art objects. The Guarnacci Etruscan Museum itself can already look back on a trail of several centuries. Eleanor Lakelin, however, was born in 1960 and hails from London. She is trained in sculpture design and woodworking. What is remarkable about her approach is that she works exclusively with trees from Britain felled by decay. She has received several awards in the past, and her portfolio finds its way into multiple collections, public and private. This collaboration marks the first time her work has been shown in Italy. The team at KALPA Galleries made a selection from Echoes of Amphora, an existing series she is still actively working on. The idea centres around the horse chestnut, a species of tree. By exploring unexpected forms, and thanks to the character of the wood, Lakelin approaches an atmosphere with a pristine, primitive afterglow. During her creative process, the matter develops into more than just a medium. From her enormous understanding of the material, she creates sculptures that take on a human soul. Therefore, they are not merely functional objects, but art that has more to it than what you see with the naked eye. She does not worry about perfectionism, as she pays extra attention to the knots and veins that hint at each tree's past. 
A contemporary artist stands side by side with a museum collection that dates back centuries
The second section of the exhibition is filled by selected pottery from the Hellenistic period of the museum's collection. As utensils, they highlight the link between life and death, between our world and theirs. They are tangible remnants of individual lives. In daily habits or for special occasions: each object recalls the relationship we establish with everything that surrounds us. According to the Etruscans, in addition to their basic function, such objects carried a spirit force of their own that went beyond the actual reality we perceive with our senses. Lakelin expresses something similar in her portfolio. Her art grows beyond its material properties, allowing the works to reach a dimension not limited to the here and now. Both collections reinforce each other and blend into a joint exercise in immortality. Across the board, you will behold works that seek higher realms and make you reflect on the subjectivity of tangible objects. 
ESSENTIA is an encouraging example of how a contemporary artist can stand side by side with a museum collection that dates back centuries. Eleanor Lakelin moulds wood into confident works of art that are easily compatible with Etruscan pottery. The Palazzo dei Priori welcomes you to this unique exhibition until 15 September. 
Photography by Daniel Civetta
Text by Cara Jacobs