Senato Blow(n) Up 2026

SENATO BLOW(N) UP is a format and an exhibition dimension that originates from a reflection on the contemporary way photography is experienced, today largely mediated by screens and reduced formats. In an era of image overproduction and rapid consumption, lingering on a single photograph becomes a conscious gesture, almost countercultural.

Large-format photographic prints are now almost exclusively reserved for museum or commercial contexts. This project instead questions the artwork, starting from its scale and from the different ways it can be contemplated. The opportunity to use a flat yet monumental “screen” — the floor of the black courtyard at Senato Hotel Milano — to present a single image, printed in an 8 × 8 meter format, thus becomes the starting point for opening a discussion about the value of a photographic work in relation to its dimension, the time of the gaze, and the depth of the visual experience.
 
The first edition dates back to 2019, during Milano Photo Week, curated by Carlo Madesani. The title also references the famous film Blow-Up by Michelangelo Antonioni and creates a dialogue among contemporary photography, point of view, and architecture. The internal courtyard space, normally a reflecting pool, is transformed into an immersive experience.

THE ARTIST

For the second edition of SENATO BLOW(N) UP, curator Claudio Composti has selected Erik Kessels, an internationally renowned Dutch artist, curator, and designer, and a leading figure in the field of vernacular photography. For more than twenty-five years, Kessels has worked primarily with pre-existing images, which he samples, assembles, and recontextualizes, creating a true visual ecosystem. An “artist without a camera” for whom photography becomes a living material to be set back into circulation.

THE IMAGE
 
The photograph displayed in the courtyard of Senato Hotel Milano comes from In Almost Every Picture, a series of books by Erik Kessels that collects photographic sequences produced by amateur authors driven by a specific obsession. Each volume is a discovery: powerful and often provocative images, capable of establishing a direct dialogue with space and with the audience. The work oscillates between the tragic and the absurd, raising a central question: when does repetition become obsession, and when does obsession become art?
 
In this case, the images were taken by Fred and Valerie, united by a shared passion for being photographed in water, fully dressed. Fred, the husband and photographer, portrays Valerie, his wife and model, in compositions that are formally impeccable. Not only is the framing precise, but the elegance of the clothing also becomes an integral part of the scene. Valerie sometimes appears almost completely submerged, with only her face emerging from the water; at other times, she is kneeling in front of a garden sprinkler or standing completely soaked inside a room while sipping champagne. Showers, bathtubs, and rain thus become the recurring stage for this visual ritual, where the more elegant the outfit, the more unsettling the image becomes.
 

THE CURATOR

Claudio Composti is one of the most respected independent curators in the field of photography and contemporary art in Europe. With nearly thirty years of experience across galleries, museums, and international art fairs, he now works as an art advisor and artistic director for cultural institutions, companies, and private collections.

He was among the founders of mc2gallery in Milan and collaborates with museums, galleries, and international festivals, curating exhibition projects across Europe and the Middle East. His most recent curatorial projects include Cabaret Vienna, Atelier Manassè at MART in Rovereto, Quayola at the M7 Museum in Doha, and Céline Croze at PAC in Milan. He lives and works between Milan and Paris.

THE SPONSOR

A leader in the auction house sector, with eleven departments including Modern and Contemporary Art, Design, Old Masters, Jewelry, and Luxury Fashion, Kruso Art Auction House is the perfect sponsor for this project centred on photography.
 
A large-scale format that goes beyond conventional dimensions, resonating with this year’s fair theme METAMORPHOSIS and reflecting the natural evolution of Kruso Art Auction House as it shapes a new concept of the auction house.
 

THE OFF CIRCUIT | MIA Photo Fair BNP Paribas
 
MIA Photo Fair BNP Paribas is a cultural platform that brings together collecting, experimentation and artistic research. Its mission is to promote photography as a contemporary artistic language. Since 2022 the fair has been part of Fiere di Parma and, from 2025, with the entry of BNL BNP Paribas as title sponsor, it has further strengthened its international profile and its support for contemporary visual culture, confirming its role as a key reference point for fine art photography in Italy.
 
The OFF Circuit, the programme across the city during MIA Photo Fair BNP Paribas, was created as a natural extension of the fair. It brings photography beyond the exhibition space, strengthening the connection with the city and turning Milan into a stage for contemporary photography.

SENATO BLOW(N) UP is a project by Senato Hotel Milano, official partner of the OFF Circuit of MIA Photo Fair BNP Paribas, and is sponsored by Kruso Art Auction House.

SENATO BLOW(N) UP 2026
March 17 – 26
 
Senato Hotel Milano