Valerio Nicolai Ancora carote, 2026

Valerio Nicolai uses painting to confront art history with elements of the prosaic and everyday. Humor, symbolism, and absurdity inhabit scenes in which reality and fiction continually shift places.

With Ancora carote [More Carrots], Valerio Nicolai depicts an enigmatic structure filled entirely with carrots. Although the artist describes it as a “castle,” the form also suggests a piece of furniture or a vending machine, combining domestic and architectural references. The exclusive presence of carrots gives the image its title and creates a sense of accumulation and constraint. With its ambiguous scale and function, the painting remains suspended between object, building, and imaginary space.