Paesaggio

24 by 12 m. An area that Sten Lex know very well. A return to the Outdoor festival on the same façade the artists worked on in its first edition, when they expressed a need to leave a permanent mark in Garbatella (a neighbourhood in Rome) that in 2010 has housed, but most importantly welcomed, the birth of the festival. The developmental path of the two artists has been a long journey; from small to large surfaces, their artistic research has been through a lot of changes, an evolution and maturity that has seen them leave the figurative world. From the footballer Totti’s huge face emerging from rips to cover the whole façade of this same building, through experimentations with anonymous portraits, they are now landing in a world where common references no longer exist. After a footnote (still in the making) of abstract lines, confused and undefined marks, and which is still very much part of their journey, comes a time of broken traits and geometry, and perhaps even a hint of colour. Their wavy lines and half-circles, like stamps, seal their return to Rome and the power of this entire operation, realised through crowdfunding. This wall represents the first public artwork realized thanks to donations from common people. This wall is the epilogue to a story with many characters; a wonderful story that has seen Sten Lex return to the same façade and show their artistic evolution. But it has also seen the festival grow and establish itself, with the active participation of a public that for the first time is not just a spectator but a real supporter, a patron.

This time the trail left behind has different footprints.