The universal necessity to free oneself

The title of Rebecca Ranieri’s first solo exhibition M’haju allibbirari (I have to free myself) owes it origins to the Sicilian dialect which is officially recognised as a language independent of the Italian language. Sicilian has many variations, particular to the different areas of the Mediterranean island and its towns and villages. Sicilian and its dialectal derivations stretch back to even beyond Hellenistic times.

Ranieri’s late grandfather was Sicilian. He taught the young Rebecca many life lessons such as the importance of family love and that life can be very cruel at times. She dedicates this exhibition to the grandfather whom she loved deeply, a man who experienced the indignity of facing deportation to World War II concentration camps. 

A’ trappula (The trap)

He spent years authoring two books, Il Filo Spinato and Viaggio nel Passato. 

“Just as he was unable to exorcise his pain except with writing, I am unable to exorcise my feelings except with painting,” the artist observes.

When she was young, she spent summer holidays visiting him in Sicily and, thus, she got accustomed to the vernacular of the language. She remarks: “Sicily is where part of me belongs.”

Through...