I messaggi di Melina (Melina’s messages)Carmela “Melina” Riccio (b. 1951)

Melina Riccio speaks in rhyme and wears embroidered dresses, often with a laurel wreath on her head as well. Born in the province of Avellino, she worked as a model maker, but suffered medical problems, and arrived in Genoa after years of suffering, wandering, and hospitalization in psychiatric clinics. From the early years of the 2000s she began to paint messages on walls: mostly rhymes and eco-friendly notes designed to be seen and heeded by passersby and related to the place where they were inscribed (near train stations, ATM machines, garbage cans, etc.). Each is signed. In the last few years she has also created embroidered writings, collages, and mixed media assemblages made from scrap material she finds in her travels.

Riccio’s graffiti messages can be found in various Italian cities, particularly in/near railway stations, since she often travels by train, and most particularly in Genoa, where she lives. While her writings were originally seen either as a curiosity or a problem of urban vandalism, recent books and exhibitions featuring her writings have provided them with greater art world legitimacy.

~Emanuela Iovino

www.costruttoridibabele.net

Genoa, Liguria, 16121 it
Latitude/Longitude: 44.40565 / 8.946256

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