Curatorial Notes

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Elena Ketra’s multidisciplinary project “Luchadoras” takes the form of a complex visual and anthropological investigation. The work combines historical research, design, performance and activism to celebrate female agency and empowerment through a radical cultural reappropriation. Taking the tradition of Mexican lucha libre as her methodological focus, the artist reinterprets the figure of the female wrestler as a universal archetype of socio-political resistance against inequality and gender-based violence.

 

The artist’s analysis draws on a historical and biographical study of the pioneers who were the first to step into the ring, shattering the taboos of the sport. The lives of these women, capable of making their mark in an entirely male-dominated world, are often marked by dynamics of abuse and profound economic and social marginalisation. In this context of vulnerability, the ritual act of wearing a mask ceases to be a purely spectacular or folkloric device; on the contrary, it becomes a powerful mechanism for redefining identity and achieving emancipation. Through the anonymity of the face, the oppressed subject is transformed into an icon of power and otherness, reversing traditional power dynamics and the mechanisms of patriarchal subjugation, to become an idolised heroine.

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In terms of form and material, Ketra translates this challenge to cultural stereotypes into a collection of nine handcrafted masks, conceived as veritable sculptural manifestos of identity and cultural assertion. Each piece encapsulates the crucial issues of social emancipation, offering a visual testament to power and self-determination. The project is completed through the performative dimension of the photographic medium: the artist herself wears the masks in a series of photographs, embodying the rebellious essence of these women. This choice historicises the aesthetic and political significance of the work, establishing a critical and visual essay on the complexity of the processes of inclusion, redemption and contemporary artistic activism.

Elena Ketra 

Elena Ketra is an Italian multidisciplinary artist who trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice, focusing her research on the body and artificial modifications and experimenting with multiple material forms and media. Female empowerment, social inclusion and awareness of the sense of self are the themes most addressed by the artist. Her works mix pop aesthetics, queer culture, and social criticism, creating alternative models that question mainstream narratives. The artist's international profile is consolidated through the prestigious residency at the ISCP in New York and overseas exhibitions, including exhibitions in Brooklyn. They have also exhibited in numerous solo and group exhibitions in Italy and abroad, including at the Museo Madre in Naples, at the MAM in Mantua, at the Silesian Museum in Katowice (PL) and at the Stichting Artes in Amsterdam. In 2024 Elena Ketra won the Exibart prize and was shortlisted for the Arte Laguna international prize with the work-manifesto Utereyes. Her works are part of public and private collections, including the Solares Foundation of the Arts and the Kyoto Shibori Museum. National newspapers and magazines have talked about his research, including Corriere della Sera, La Repubblica, Rai, Radio Deejay and Vanity Fair. A work from the Luchadoras project, dedicated to Mexican wrestlers, was recently chosen as the cover of the art magazine Exibart.

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