Photos Courtesy of Fondazione Bvlgari
Within Il Giardino at Bvlgari Hotel Milano, Ya’aburnee (Untranslated Fragment I and II), 2025 by Monia Ben Hamouda explores the meaning and instability of language through stone and ancient symbols, becoming a suspended presence between memory and time. The installation is part of a wider project by Fondazione Bvlgari for La Biennale Arte 2026, which also includes the artist’s work at the Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana in Venice alongside Lara Favaretto.
Drawing inspiration from ancient artefacts such as the Rosetta Stone, Ben Hamouda imagines alternative historical narratives and questions our understanding of ancient civilisations as if essential translations had never taken place. The artist alludes to ‘prehistoric’ art forms, such as cave paintings and pieces of marble carved with a language that has yet to emerge. She suggests that language itself could be treated as a sculptural material, adaptable to fit our diverse cultures.
The Rosetta Stone, which presented familiar yet initially incomprehensible scripts, echoes Ben Hamouda’s work in creating a visual language that is simultaneously recognizable and enigmatic. This reflects philosopher Abdelbebir Khatibi's notion of a "plural language" that transcends binary cultural identities. Her approach to linguistic architecture parallels the monumentality of language history. Her use of ancient inscriptions alike embodies the weight of cultural memory and the power of words to transcend time. In the artist’s work, language becomes a monument that simultaneously evokes recognition and eludes complete understanding.
