Research Proposal for Viafarini Residency

Claudia Müller Montes

During my residency at Viafarini, I want to continue an artistic research project focused on the lakes of Northern Italy. These lakes are connected to cosmic rhythms, local memories, and sacred stories. I’m especially interested in how some lakes—like Como, Maggiore, and Garda—are aligned with the sun during the solstices. This shows how people in the past saw a deep connection between water and the sky.

My project brings together different ways of thinking about water from the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. In many cultures, water is seen as a sacred element, full of invisible life and protective beings. In Lake Garda, people speak of the Bennie, a creature that lives in the deep and protects the lake. In Milan, the image of the green dragon appears as a symbol of the earth and water. These myths connect with Andean stories, where lakes are also alive and filled with powerful non-human forces.

Two years ago, I studied the Aniene River, a tributary of the Tiber in Rome. Its water comes only from underground aquifers and springs. This type of hidden water system connects with my interest in underground water as something deep and silent. In Lombardy, these invisible waters are also important. Under the Po Valley, large aquifers flow. They are filled by melting snow from the Alps and move through the soil. This underground water system supports a big part of the region.

As part of the project, I will also film underwater scenes in lakes like Garda, Como, and Maggiore. I want to observe the colors, textures, and movement from inside the lakes. These videos will go along with artworks I will create using two materials: watercolors and ceramics. The ceramics will be shaped based on the real forms of the lakes, turning their geography into physical objects.

This project is a poetic and visual study of lakes as living bodies. Water holds memories, connects places, and flows between surface and underground. My research at Viafarini is a way to explore water not only as a natural element, but also as a guide for stories, myths, and knowledge.