Eleonora Agostini quietly observes her mother’s dual role as a mother and worker in their family restaurant. Through photography, archival images, video, audio, and text, the project explores the three dimensions of theatrical experience: stage, backstage, and performance.
On stage, the waitress performs professionalism and composure, embodying societal expectations. Agostini’s constructed portraits reveal the fragility behind this persona, questioning the authenticity of the public self. Backstage, unseen labour and vulnerability unfold—moments of exhaustion and reprieve, conveyed through intimate images and personal anecdotes.
In an age of consumerism and self-representation, A Study on Waitressing asks: What lies behind the polished surface of everyday labour? How do gestures shaped by necessity reflect or resist imposed roles? By dissolving the boundary between the staged and the real, Agostini reveals the body as a site of negotiation and fluid identity.
Text by Rocco Venezia (abridged)
