Segni sul volto: Permanent, Ephemeral And Virtual. Speech By Roberta Bernabei

Permanent marks on our face, as a decoration to communicate with our fellow human beings, originated with the tattoo. In this context, the tattoos of the Maori people will be discussed, as well as various techniques such as scarification and their social meanings. Another reflection will be made on the function of body decoration among the exponents of the Japanese Yakuza. Moving geographically to Russia, between the mid-1970s and the end of the 1980s, vory, namely personal criminal histories tattooed on the bodies of Russian prisoners, will be analysed. After the tattoos, other forms of facial modification will be analysed, such as make-up or lifting, in which the subcutaneous lines are not made with inks but with hyaluronic acid. The cultural and individual interpretation of these forms of ornamentation will be proposed by considering the contents in their expressive form. In conclusion, the role of the ephemeral sign on the human face will be analysed as opposed to the role of the permanent one, with particular attention to ‘filters’ and augmented reality
/  Roberta Bernabei, July 2021

About Segni sul volto
Segni sul volto (Signs over the face), a seminar/workshop conceived by Carla Riccoboni in collaboration with Le Arti Orafe, will open with a series of lectures transmitted on an online platform, conducted by professionals from various fields of expertise, focusing on the theme of the project or on the relationship between sign and identity, analysed from a variety of perspectives. The appointments, concentrated in the month of October, will be an opportunity to retrace and investigate the expressive and symbolic meanings of facial decoration throughout history and in the present day in different geographical contexts, and to discover the horizons that are emerging for the future with the advent of new technologies.

About Roberta Bernabei
Roberta Bernabei, Associate Professor at Loughborough University, School of Design and Creative Arts, Honorary Associate Professor at School of Jewellery di Birmingham City University, International Ambassador of the Culture Craft Cluster and Editor-in-Chief of the scientific journal Journal of Jewellery Research.


The seminar/workshop will be in Italian.
Free participation upon registration/selection.
The seminar meetings will be transmitted on online platform and coordinated by Carla Riccoboni and Alice Rendon.

Registration: info@artiorafe.it; Information: alice@artiorafe.it

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