Membrane

“Membrane originates from the symbol of the thistle flower, as a membrane, a breathable surface similar to skin. Like skin, the flower is also a threshold between two states, between the visible and the invisible. This artwork is an attempt to give space to what is fragile, overlooked, or unspeakable. It offers a form of testimony, a gesture of care, and a way to transform trauma into something sacred and tangible.”

Greta Pllana is an Albanian artist born in Durrës. After the fall of the communist regime in the 1990s, her family moved to Venice. She graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice in 2020 and spent a period of study at the Academy of Fine Arts (AVU) in Prague. She now lives and works in Treviso.

In her artistic research the themes of identity and memory often recur, but the goal is almost always the pursuit of an abstract and suspended reality, one that feels almost “frozen” in time. In this context, the representation of a state of mind becomes more important than the depiction of everyday life. She uses art, especially painting, as a means of exploring her origins and expressing the traditions of her native country. Her work often reflects on themes such as the female figure in Albanian society, the centrality of the family, and the ritual of marriage. A distinctive palette of greens and pinks lends her compositions a delicate and recognizable visual identity.

In Roots, nature becomes a silent witness to personal memory and identity. The landscape acts as a unifying force, emphasizing the complex relationship between territory and individual, while exploring the tension between the inner self and the external world—in this case, Albania. This connection reveals the ambiguity and disorientation we experience daily, evoking both grounding and uncertainty. Roots invites viewers to reflect on how identity and place are intertwined, revealing the nuanced complexity of belonging.