POV (Red Ladybug, Amulet), 2025

POV (Red Ladybug, Amulet), 2025, Oil on linen, 10 x 10 cm, 22,5 x 22,5 x 5 cm (with artist frame)

POV (Red Ladybug, Amulet) (2025) is a miniature painting by Patrizio di Massimo that zooms in on the artist’s own open mouth, tongue extended, as a red ladybug hovers or lands within. Previously seen in his self-portraits, the ladybug acts as a recurring symbol of protection, luck, and joy—yet here, its placement complicates the narrative. Inside the mouth, the ladybug transforms from a passive emblem to an uncanny force: speech is suspended, and the artist, once the subject, becomes a vessel. The painting’s title, POV, references both the artist’s internal perspective and the viewer’s own, echoing the visual tropes of social media storytelling. Through this intimate, talismanic image, di Massimo plays with dynamics of agency and submission, presence and voicelessness. As both a literal and symbolic amulet, the work becomes a cipher for the exhibition’s broader themes of opening, receiving, and transformation.