Barbara Matera

Barbara Jane Matera is a multidisciplinary contemporary artist from Bologna, Italy. Raised between Italy and the United States, she holds degrees in Sociology and Visual Arts from the Academy of Fine Arts in Bologna. After nine years in San Francisco, where she connected with the local art scene, she returned to her hometown.

Barbara has participated in significant public art projects in Italy and Lebanon and has been part of artist residencies such as Studio Orta in Paris and Residency 108 in New York. Her works have been featured in international exhibitions, and in 2014, she won the OPEN – Pergine Festival with her performance Ritmo Collettivo.

Her work, characterized by an abstract and three-dimensional aesthetic, utilizes natural and textile materials to explore the relationship between humans and nature, with a focus on social and environmental themes. She believes in art's power to stimulate social change and raise awareness of ecological issues.

Among her most important projects are Confluenze in Treviso and Bsharre (2016) and Cuore di Pietra in Pianoro (2011). She is currently working on the project Sul margine delle Terre Nuove with the University of Ferrara.