The Italian Museum: Nonna’s House

Ariel Ruby
12 February - 9 March 2025

Ariel-Ruby-EXHIB-PG-for-web.jpg

A home is more than just a place - it is a vessel for memory. In The Italian Museum: Nonna’s House, Ariel Ruby transports us into the world of the Southern Italian migrant home, where scenes - like steam rising from a stovetop, an orchid’s delicate lip, a drop of oil in a bowl of water, or an empty liquor bottle on the mantle - are imbued with meaning. These seemingly ordinary gestures carry the weight of personal and collective history, shaped by migration, tradition, and the stories of those who came before.

Through video, sculpture, and installation that's rich in kitsch and nostalgia, Ruby’s work invites us to reflect on the ways we carry our histories within us, and how the objects we surround ourselves with become markers of who we are and where we come from.

Ariel Ruby is an Australian-Italian artist who creates immersive and animated installations that, using a variety of media, reflect on contemporary life. Ruby has exhibited extensively in Australia since 2015 and recently exhibited in Taiwan with The Jellyball Effect (2023).