On Tuesday, May 6, 2025, Fondazione Pastificio Cerere presents FEAR OF MIRRORS, a solo exhibition by Alba Zari, curated by Francesco Rombaldi and supported by the European Union as part of the Creative Europe program, within the framework of the European project Intergalactica. The exhibition will be open to the public from Wednesday, May 7, to Thursday, June 26, 2025.

Alba Zari uses photography as a tool for exploration and self-analysis, questioning the power of the image as a trace, clue, or evidence, while also examining its ambiguous and deceptive nature. Beneath an apparent scientific rigor lies a deep poetic sensitivity through which she investigates themes of memory and identity.

Her nomadic childhood, spent in various cities and countries, has shaped her perspective and artistic practice. Travel has become an essential element of her visual research, addressing complex social issues—from studies on mental health institutions in Italy following the Basaglia Law, to reflections on eating disorders deeply embedded in American society.

For her solo exhibition at Fondazione Pastificio Cerere, Alba Zari explores the attraction to one’s own reflection—an ancestral instinct that marks the first step toward self- awareness. Recognizing oneself in the mirror defines boundaries, shapes, and colors in the image we have of ourselves. But what happens when the mirror becomes a screen? From this premise, FEAR OF MIRRORS emerges as a project that explores the dynamics of representation in the digital age. Through a visual and conceptual journey, Alba Zari examines the relationship between image, identity, and cultural conditioning, questioning how new technologies influence self-perception.

The exhibition is conceived as an immersive experience – a flow of images and reflections that challenge contemporary visual and social constructs. Through a plurality of artistic languages and references, the artist invites the viewer to question what we define as authentic and to reflect on how much our image is truly our own, rather than being shaped by external perspectives.

FEAR OF MIRRORS does not offer definitive answers but opens a dialogue on our digital present: has the mirror finally shattered, or are we still slaves to its reflection?

Born in Bangkok in 1987, Alba Zari graduated from the DAMS in Bologna. She attended an intensive course in Documentary Photography at the International Center of Photography in New York and obtained a Master's degree in Photography and Visual Design from NABA in Milan. Her recent works include Fear of Mirrors (2023– 2024), Rakshasa (2023–2024), and Occult (2019–2023), a visual study on the propaganda of the cult Children of God. She traveled, tracing her mother's past to India, Nepal, and Thailand. The Y - Research of Biological Father (2017), born out of a journey in search of her origins through the father she never knew. Places (2015), a book and photographic project executed with ElementWo, which deals with the analysis of the visual communication of ISIS propaganda. She released the short documentary FreiKörperKultur (2021), which premiered at the Venice Film Festival - Settimana della Critica. She is currently working on her first documentary feature film, White Lies. With The Y, she is part of the Foam Talents 2020. Her work has been exhibited in international festivals and museums such as MAXXI (Rome), London Art Fair, Circulation Paris, and Athens Photo Festival. Her works are included in private collections and museums, including Fotomuseum Winterthur, MAXXI, Fondazione Orestiadi, and the Collezione Donata Pizzi. She won the Special Jury Prize at Images Vevey (Switzerland, 2022) for the work Occult, the Graziadei Prize (2021), and second prize at the Backlight Prize (Finland, 2020) for The Y