Erbario

In the political and experimental context of the 1970s, Elisa Montessori o!ered a unique perspective that gave visibility to the feminine without explicit militancy. She developed a body of work marked by independence and creative coherence, distancing herself from dominant trends in the Italian context such as Arte Povera, which was predominantly male. Her work focused on the intimate, poetic and symbolic, establishing a constant dialogue between words, memory and image. Through drawing, textures and the materiality of paper, she created a personal language that valued the
delicate and introspective. Erbario is based on her research into the mythological subject of Daphne, exploring the relationship between plant transformation and human metamorphosis, as well as the interaction between nature and sign. The feminised work of the herbarium, which preserves nature as decorative material, is traditionally linked to the conception of women as part of the natural realm. By turning leaves and branches into drawings, Montessori recalls women’s key role as agents of transformation from nature to culture.

María Teresa López Flores