Inscriptions and Verses

Published on the occasion of their exhibition Vessels at Lunchtime Gallery (02.12.22 - 05.02.23), Inscriptions and Verses is a pamphlet of writing and drawing by Emalia Mattia. Mattia repurposes lyrics and chords that their Grandmother would tape to the back of her autoharp when playing in her bluegrass band in the 1970s, accompanying them with fluid drawings of bodies in expressions of labour and passion, strife and joy. These characters, much like the ones in Mattia's paintings, become stand-in performers amongst imagined scenarios that embody local architecture, historical artifacts and illustrations of desire, as well as American country musician Tammy Wynette's the stoical lyric 'A real good life is hard to find'.

Emalia Mattia was born in Washington D.C. and grew up mainly in Liguria, Italy. Since graduating from the Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia in 2018, they have been developing their painting, printmaking, and performance practice in Glasgow for the past four years.