Signposts, Alberto Timossi's installation on the Kothon of the island of Mothia

On August 24, 2019, at 5 p.m., the installation Segnacoli by Alberto Timossi (Naples, 1965), curated by Lorenzo Nigro and Giuseppe Capparelli, will be inaugurated at the Kothon on the Island of Mozia.

The event is realized in collaboration with the Whitaker Foundation of Palermo, Sapienza University of Rome - Archaeological Mission to Mozia, Soprintendenza Regionale BBCCAA of Trapani, and is under the patronage of the Municipality of Marsala, the Order of Architects Planners Landscapers and Conservators of the Province of Trapani and the Orestiadi Foundation.

Alberto Timossi, an artist who has long been involved in environmental art interventions, will install atemporary site-specificwork in the Kothon with the intention of establishing a dialogue with this place of unequivocal historical and religious significance and highlighting its singularities related to rites and customs of antiquity of civilizations that have now disappeared.

Mozia is a small Mediterranean island not far from the western Sicilian coast and is known for its central position in trade routes; in the southern part of the island is a freshwater pond that catalyzed the interest of the Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans. Over the centuries it has been considered the center of a sacred area, a mirror for observing the vault of heaven, a lustral basin with a large stone statue at its center, and a salt pond in more recent times.

This pond has been fully explored by the Wisdom archaeological mission, which has also investigated its spatial, structural and hydraulic connections with the nearby temples of the god Baal, the goddess Astarte and the Sacred Waters, which have been unearthed over the past 15 years. Along the stone wall, archaeologists also discovered numerous markers, consisting mainly of river stones brought to the island from the mainland, placed on the ground to mark places of interest.

The Segnacoli installation refers to the latter: the work consists of twenty-six red vertical PVC elements (the number 26 metaphorically represents the temporal distance in centuries from the foundation of Kothon to the present) and emerges from the surface of the water. Signposts will be placed on the path established by the water to emphasize the fusion with the salt water coming from the sea, and also, in the installation phase, the individual elements will be placed following the configuration of the current constellations reflected in the water.

Pictured is the Kothon of the Island of Mothia.

Signposts, Alberto Timossi's installation on the Kothon of the island of Mothia

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