JOANA VASCONCELOS
VENUS
PM23, PALAZZO MIGNANELLI, ROME, ITALY
18 JANUARY – 31 MAY 2026
Fondazione Valentino Garavani e Giancarlo Giammetti presents VENUS, a major new exhibition by Joana Vasconcelos—VENUS, Valentino Garavani through the eyes of Joana Vasconcelos—opening at PM23, the cultural space envisioned by Valentino Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti in the heart of Rome, in Piazza Mignanelli. The show was conceived as a dialogue between art, fashion and the city, free from rigid museological frameworks and firmly rooted in the present cultural landscape.
Sacro Cuore at PM23 © Michele Colasuonno, Courtesy of FVG Services
Marilyn at PM23 © Michele Colasuonno, Courtesy of FVG Services
Valkyrie Venus at PM23 © 2026 FVG Services © 2026 Soqquadro
Witch Mirror at PM23 © 2026 FVG Services © 2026 Michele Colasuonno
Renowned for her monumental and highly scenographic installations, Joana Vasconcelos develops at PM23 a fluid, non-linear exhibition journey that brings together emblematic works and new site-specific creations inspired by the universe of Valentino Garavani. Created through an ambitious participatory process involving over 200 contributors across Lisbon and Rome—including students, artisans and members of diverse communities—Valkyrie Venus is the pulsating heart of the exhibition. The work transforms the idea of the garment into sculpture and fashion into a visual and symbolic gesture. All this converges in a single, collective artistic gesture, a powerful symbol of the transmission of know-how and tradition, transformed into a vehicle for empowerment and emancipation, shared care, and individual and collective resistance: art as an agent of change, a tool for re-signification, education and solidarity.
Drag Race at the Ara Pacis © 2026 FVG Services © 2026 Michele Colasuonno
Full Steam Ahead (Red) at PM23 © Michele Colasuonno, Courtesy of FVG Services
Garden of Eden at PM 23 © Michele Colasuonno, Courtesy of FVG Services
Extending beyond PM23, the exhibition resonates throughout the city via a constellation of public installations: I’LL BE YOUR MIRROR at Piazza Mignanelli, SOLITAIRE at Terrazza del Pincio, and Drag Race at the Ara Pacis, establishing an ongoing dialogue between contemporary art, architecture and the urban landscape.
I'll be your Mirror at Piazza Mignanelli © 2026 FVG Services © 2026 Michele Colasuonno
