ADA Project

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Cyryl Polackzek
Martyna’s shoes, 2026
oil on canvas
46 x 38 cm

Sette mesi
June 4 | July 29, 2026

Photo by Roberto Apa

Nenie

Three works from the Nenie group:
Nenia I, Nenia II, Nenia III

All works copper, brass, stainless steel, iron,
Swiss stone pine chips , water, silicon tubes, electric pump, induction stove

Various dimensions

Nenie is a sculptural cycle that is part of the project Dormancy, exhibited at Santa Cristina (BZ) during (Future) Paradise Gardens, the 10th edition of Biennale Gherdëina 10 curated by Samuel Leuenberger .

Dormancy is conceived as a funerary rite in which, through disappearance and mourning, a potential beginning is celebrated. The work stems from the artist’s reflection on cyclicality, leading him to conceive a project that is both an interactive sculptural installation and a platform for mutual exchange and dialogue with the communities involved in the research phase.

Through a syncretic study of natural and cultural systems, the project reflects on the emotional states of loss, inoperativity, and quiescence—that is, a reversible condition of vital suspension that a living being can self-induce. Forms of quiescence include the germinative capacity of seeds, which can remain inactive for years while awaiting more favorable conditions to sprout, as well as animal hibernation and plant dormancy.

Nenie consists of three copper sculptures that function as distillation devices to extract hydrolates and essential oils from plants with calming and soporific properties, such as Swiss stone pine (commonly known as cirmolo), a conifer that grows only above 1,200 meters in altitude and is particularly valued in Val Gardena for wood carving.

During specific moments of the Biennale, the distillation cycle will be activated. From the sculptures, small fragrant drops will drip, as if the sculptural ensemble were in mourning or overcome by deep sorrow. Visitors will benefit from the phytotherapeutic effects of this balsamic weeping, entering a state of drowsiness analogous to the dormancy of seeds.

Dormancy is co-produced by the Biennale Gherdëina 10 and is realized with the support of the Directorate-General for DG Creatività Contemporanea MiC of the Ministry of Culture within the framework of the Italian Council programme 14th, International Commissions.