New artist-in residence: Barbara Prenka

Barbara Prenka explores themes of identity—both individual and collective—and migration. For years, the blanket has been at the core of her artistic research: a symbol of care and protection, a constant presence in our lives, but also a silent witness to conflict and social marginality.

Between July and September 2025, Barbara Prenka is in residence at Lottozero, where she further investigates the transformation of the blanket, recreated from scratch as a plastic object between painting and sculpture, into a spatial, three-dimensional form.
Her process involves experimenting with digital embroidery and layering new narrative elements onto the work.

The outcome of the residency will be a new series of textile sculptures, which will premiere during the Bolzano Art Weeks (BAW) in October 2025, and will later be exhibited at the Lottozero Kunsthalle as the third chapter of our Soft Sculpture biennial exhibitions program.

Born in 1990 in Gjakova, Kosovo, Barbara Prenka holds both a BA and MA in Painting from the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice. She currently lives and works between Berlin, Bolzano, and Venice.
Her recent solo exhibitions include Covers, curated by Zef Paci at Arthouse Shkodër (2025) and at the Ministry of Culture Gallery in Prishtina (2024); What time is it between my fingers? at A plus A Gallery, Venice (2025); and Dita e re at the Kosovo Documentation Center in Prishtina (2023).

Prenka’s residency is part of our Soft Sculpture program, supported by Toscanaincontemporanea 2025.

Barbara Prenka, Do You Recognize the Corner next to the Window?, 2024, digitally printed fabric, sewn and padded with wadding and canvas, series of 7 pieces, 190 x 140 cm. Courtesy the artist.