Alzheimer Café II is a cloud of the future to preserve musical memories, a performative and imaginary monument. The gallery of the museum is white, empty and overexposed. Ten people inhabit Alzheimer Café each time, all wearing headphones: five are guides, five are visitors. Alzheimer Café (2014/ongoing) is a series of performances, sound installations and public interventions initiated by Valentina Vetturi and dedicated to ‘musical memories’, which incredibly resist to the neurological degeneration caused by the disease and that have been inspiring the entire cycle. All the works from the series Alzheimer Café include musical fragments sung or hummed by people affected by neurological disorders of memory. Since 2014, Vetturi has been working in collaboration with health and medical centers, their staff, and their patients. Despite that, the work deliberately avoids the documentary format. The artist assembles the voices into a musical fabric with the aim of creating a non-conventional listening space in which flimsy personal memories take up a public dimension.
Curated by: Hou Hanru
Produced by: Fondazione MAXXI Roma
Premiered at: MAXXI Museum, Roma, in the frame of Open Museum Open City and it is now part of the museum permanent collection.
In partnership with: MACRO-Museo d’Arte Contemporanea Roma, Artists in Residence programme.
Performer: Camilla Carè, Stefania Carvisiglia, Diana Magri, Valerio Sirna, Cinzia Sità
Shooting: Gianfranco Fortuna
Sound Manipulation: Roberto Matarrese
In collaboration with: Associazione Alzheimer Uniti Roma ONLUS e Fondazione Roma–Sanità; Centro Anziani Villaggio Olimpico; Centro Diurno Alzheimer “Arcobaleno & sole-luna”; Centro Diurno Alzheimer “Parco di Vejo” ASL RME; Roma Capitale-Dipartimento Politiche Sociali, Sussidiarietà e Salute.
Thanks to: all the people who have lent their voice to this work, Luigia Leonardelli and Rossana Miele.