The new event in the MUSEC’s Altrarti cycle opens to the public on July 17, presenting one of the world’s most important collections of traditional sculptures from the Philippine Cordillera and contemporary Asian artworks in the Spazio Maraini. A unique collection of its kind, it bridges different cultures and times, offering a profound reflection on the aesthetic and spiritual value of simplicity. The Martin Kurer Collection is the result of a clear and coherent vision, guided by the ability to recognize, in distant times and cultures, the presence of a form of visual intelligence that speaks through measurement, reduction, and symbolic concentration. In this context, the collection becomes a listening device.
The heart of the project lies in the visual and conceptual juxtaposition between works of material culture from the Cordillera—ritual objects such as bulul sculptures created to watch over the harvest and preserve the bond between man and nature, or everyday objects such as traditional Ifugao spoons carved on the handle and laden with symbolic value – and the works of six contemporary artists from different Asian countries: Li Shirui (China), Lao Lianben (Philippines), Endō Toshikatsu (Japan), Zhang Lin Hai (China), Somboon Hormtientong (Thailand), and Francisco Pellicer Viri (Philippines).