Exhibitions and Events

Interi to feature with Il Sacro Nell’Arte at the Basilica della Santissima Annunziata

March 22nd - 30th, 2025

 

Jean O'Reilly Barlow

Interi will be exhibiting at Il Sacro Nell’Arte or “The Sacred in Art” in the Basilica della Santissima Annunziata opening on March 22nd. 

Il Sacro Nell’Arte is an exhibition that works to bring artists closer to the text of the Bible for its Christian teachings and for an ethical sustainability of the social fabric and political-cultural identity of Europe. This year, the theme is centered around “water” in scripture. The exhibition will be held from 22th to 30th of March 2025 in the Chiostro Grande of the Basilica della SS Annunziata, the main Marian sanctuary in Florence. It will be taking place exactly 775 years after the laying of the first stone which took place on 25 March 1250, coinciding with the feast of the Annunciation. The exhibition is hosted by ANLA and Regionale Toscana and the exhibition will run until March 30th. 

Jean O’Reilly Barlow, the artist and founder of Interi, has created two works of art that will be featured at the exhibition. One piece takes inspiration from Revelation 22:1 and the other from John 19:34.

Interi's artistic discipline centers around preserving sacred, ecclesiastical, Italian artifacts that have gone “beyond restoration” and transforming them into works of art. Most of these pieces are 17th and 18th century so they have so much historical value but this exhibition allows us to present them in an exhibition that honors the spiritual significance of each piece.

The opening will be at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 22 where there will be a presentation by Silvia Ranzi as well as musical and recitative interludes. The ceremony will feature speeches by authorities in the cultural and institutional field including the President of the Tuscany Region of ANLA/Onlus Fiorenza Ciullini, the National President of ANLA/Onlus Edoardo Patriarca, the General Director of ANLA Antonello Sacchi, the Mayor of Florence Sara Funaro and the President of the Tuscany Region Eugenio Giani.

 

 

Interi presents The Florence Fragment Collection with The Museo de' Medici

October 12th - November 10th, 2024

Interi exhibited The Florence Fragment Collection with the Museo de' Medici this past October and November in commemoration of the Florence flood of 1966.

“I am honored that I presented this collection with the Museo de’ Medici in the city where the pieces found their origin and precious history,” says Jean O’Reilly Barlow. “This collection is to honor the history of Florence and to show the beauty and resilience the city holds. It is the birthplace of the Renaissance and this collection pays tribute to the rebirth after the flood.”

Jean O’Reilly Barlow, former Irish supermodel and the artist and creative director of Interi, has created works of art that exhibited with the notable Italian museum this past October and November 2024. This is a collection of historical fragment artifacts found and saved from the infamous Florence flood of 1966 which was the worst flood the city had faced since the Renaissance. After days of severe and heavy rainfall, the Arno River flooded and submerged the Tuscan streets. Along with the irreplaceable masterpieces of art and rare books, tons of mud and rubble severely damaged or destroyed the artifacts in the very churches they adorned. These pieces have now been transformed into sculptural works of art. The exhibition was shown during the 58th anniversary of the historic flood which occurred on November 4th, 1966.

Jean O’Reilly Barlow, the artist and founder of Interi and the director of Museo de’ Medici, Samuele Lastrucci, also presented a piece from The Florence Fragment Collection to the mayor of Florence, Sara Funaro in Palazzo Vecchio on the anniversary of the event.

The piece was gifted to Funaro, whose grandfather, Piero Bargellini, was mayor of Florence during the time of the flood in 1966 and helped restore the city under his leadership. 

After learning more about the history of the pieces, Barlow had an idea to collect and transform the artifacts into art. Once decoration and artistic depictions that adorned churches throughout Florence, these 17th and 18th century fragments had been significantly distressed from the mud and water and were deemed “beyond restoration.” But there is still the original paint and silt left on the pieces to uphold the integrity, craftsmanship, and history of sculptural fragments. The collection is proof that there is more beauty to uncover - bringing forth a new era and context of "modern mud angels."

The collection of distressed artifacts have been collected and transformed by Barlow using natural specimens from all around the world to create historical yet contemporary sculptural works. By incorporating the rare minerals, it looks as though the pieces evolved together over time. The pieces also emulate a deeper message of restoration that captures the bigger mission behind Interi.

“Each piece shows that what is distressed and broken is not “beyond restoration” but can be transformed into something even more beautiful than before. It’s not in spite of its history, but because of it.”

The Museo de' Medici or “the Medici Museum” is located in the monumental Rotonda Brunelleschi which was designed in 1432 and built by Filippo Brunelleschi, a famous Italian architect who also built the Florence dome. He is also considered a founding father of Renaissance architecture. The Museo de’ Medici is devoted to preserving the history of the Medici family and exhibiting precious collections of works of art, historical relics, original documents, faithful reconstructions and multimedia installations. 

The entire collection is now available for purchase on Interi’s online gallery.

 

Interi Presents Il Coraggio e la Paura or "Courage and Fear" with Museo Casa di Dante

September 21st - October 4th, 2024


Museo Casa di Dante is premiering its exhibition Il Coraggio e la Paura featuring works of art by Interi on September 21st in Florence, Italy. Jean O’Reilly Barlow, the artist and creative director of Interi, has created works of art for the exhibition which in English translates to “Courage and Fear.” The exhibition will be hosted by Museo Casa di Dante, a museum that honors the history and life of Dante Alighieri. It was formerly the famous Italian poet’s home and is now committed to sharing Dante’s work and important works of art. This autumn, the chosen exhibition had to circulate around the idea of courage and fear.






“Interi is proud to be presenting with Museo Casa di Dante for the exhibition, Il Coraggio e la Paura. In English, this translates to “Courage and Fear.” For the collection, I used figurative, ecclesiastical elements and parts of 17th and 18th century Italian crucifixes to create sculptural works of art. For example, one piece I used an arm that came off of a figure of Christ and for another I used hand-carved, figurative crossbones that were at the bottom of a crucifix and created pieces that illustrated the idea of courage and fear - two juxtaposing ideas that can’t coexist without the other. I combined each ecclesiastical fragment with precious gems and minerals to create sculptural works of art. These fragments originally came from historical churches throughout Italy but we’re taken away due to age and distress. I believed that in their brokenness, they could be transformed into something more beautiful than before. Fear can often keep us in our brokenness, and it takes vulnerability and courage to be transformed. I hope this collection inspires others and helps people see that nothing is beyond restoration. It takes courage to step out of boundaries and overcome hardships and I hope these works of art can inspire hope to do that."



-- Jean O'Reilly Barlow, Artist and Founder of Interi
















Interi Announces The Crucifix Collection Exhibition with The Museo de’ Medici

March 23rd - April 21st, 2024

Interi's Crucifix Collection



Interi will be premiering The Crucifix Collection, an exhibition presenting 17th and 18th century Italian crucifixes transformed into works of art, at the Museo de’ Medici in Florence, Italy on March 23rd. Jean O’Reilly Barlow, the artist and creative director of Interi, has collected several original 17th and 18th century fragmented crucifixes from historical churches throughout Italy. 

"With Easter approaching, many can appreciate the beauty and craftsmanship that went into each ecclesiastical artifact. Once works of art that graced churches throughout Italy, these pieces were used as depictions to ornately articulate the beauty of the gospel story. Over time, the crosses and crucifixes became too distressed and were deemed beyond restoration. But the artifacts still hold significance and history in each detail.”  Each 17th and 18th century Italian crucifix has been preserved and transformed with rare minerals from all over the world. The minerals adorn the broken aspects of the artifacts, looking as though each piece evolved together over time and creating contemporary sculptures of old and new.

"Through passion and preservation, the figurative elements represent a powerful message of redemption and transformation – not just in a literal sense of what each symbol has come to represent, but also in metaphor,” says Barlow. “The ecclesiastical fragments that were once broken have been restored into a new sculptural work. Through contemporary interpretations and natural specimens, each historical artifact transforms into something even more beautiful than before, capturing the message of Easter."

The exhibition will premiere on March 23rd at 6:30 pm at the Museo de’ Medici and will close April 21st. The Museo de' Medici is located in the monumental Rotonda Brunelleschi which was designed in 1432 and built by Filippo Brunelleschi, a famous Italian architect who also built the Florence dome and who is also considered a founding father of Renaissance architecture. The Museo de’ Medici is devoted to preserving the history of the Medici family and exhibiting precious collections of works of art, historical relics, original documents, faithful reconstructions and multimedia installations.

To view available pieces from the collection, click here.

 


Interi Presents Spolvero: Fresco Prints Past and Present with Florence University of the Arts

August 3rd - September 20th, 2023

 

Interi's Spolvero Collection



 
Interi will be premiering Spolvero: Fresco Patterns Past and Present, an exhibition presenting the history and art of spolvero, at Corridoio Fiorentino this Thursday, August 3rd. The exhibition is in collaboration with Florence University of the Arts and will run until September 20th. It will be open to students and the public. Barlow has worked with the university’s curation students to put the exhibition together. Through this event, Interi will collaborate with FUA-AUF toward its mission to “promote and renew creative disciplines in a city renowned for its history-changing innovations” as the collection mimics the university’s vision to “deeply understand the principles of the past and how they are present in today's context.” 
  




Jean O’Reilly Barlow, the artist and creative director behind Interi, has collected several original 18th and 19th century spolvero prints that were used to create fresco designs and wall art in historical, prestigious homes and buildings in Italy. She has now used the prints to create works of art through transferring the prints onto canvas through the giclée method.
 









   
“These spolvero prints have become works of art in their own right,” says Barlow. “These were once used to create frescos in a palazzo or beautiful building throughout Italy. Now I present this collection of limited edition spolvero prints so that people can have their own fresco pattern in their own homes.”
 





Interi Spolvero
 

Spolvero is an artistic method of transferring a design from a print to the prepared surface of a canvas, panel, or wall. Holes are punched along the outlines of the original design followed by "pouncing" which is the application of powdered pigments that leaves a series of dots to create the tracing for the piece. This is then placed over the surface to be painted. This technique was initially developed in order to replicate recurring patterns or create frescoes and paintings. It was widely used in the 15th century during the Renaissance and many famous Italian artists used this technique including Leonardo Da Vinci. He even used this method to create The Mona Lisa.
 






Interi now presents the spolvero prints in two forms - displaying the originals and also showing the prints transferred onto canvas and framed with antique wood moldings and precious gems. The limited edition canvas prints are available to purchase through the gallery. “Through presenting the collection, the pieces continue to preserve the history and significance of this Renaissance technique while also creating works of art to grace any wall or space,” says Barlow.
 














Interi Presents The More Than a Fragment Exhibition with St. Mark's English Church

July 26th at 6 pm

Interi's More Than a Fragment



Interi founder and former Irish top model, Jean O’Reilly Barlow, will be hosting a pop-up exhibition titled More Than a Fragment at St. Mark's English Church on July 26th. Barlow, who goes by the artist name, Interi, will exhibit her collection of 17th and 18th century Italian church artifacts preserved and transformed into works of art back in the 15th century palazzo that was converted into the church. The exhibition will be centered on Interi’s More Than a Fragment initiative.

More Than a Fragment uses Barlow’s art to raise awareness about the realities of exploitation and uses a portion of profits from her work to fund restoration programs for survivors. About eight years ago, after hearing from her daughters about the devastating reality of modern-day slavery, Barlow saw a
correlation between her art and the people affected and wanted to use her art as a form of activism.

“Through my work, I preserve 17th and 18th century fragment artifacts that have gone beyond restoration and were discarded from historic Italian churches. I then transform them into sculptural art through natural specimens, artistic methods, and contemporary interpretations,” says Barlow. “Like the artifacts, there are also millions of people who see no future for themselves, feeling worthless with no value.”


The modern world currently faces a slavery epidemic where 50+ million people are enslaved (Source: International Justice Mission). Of those millions of people, 71% are women and girls, many of whom are being forced into the trafficking industry (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime). In order to take part in the fight against modern-day slavery, Barlow started More Than a Fragment. Interi’s initiative teams up with an organization that advocates on survivors’ behalf: International Justice Mission. IJM seeks to raise awareness about the realities of human trafficking while restoring victims to wholeness. Barlow’s oldest daughter, Joybelle Christmus, is currently a project management lead for IJM’s North America Strategic Partnerships. She hopes to be able to use her art to push this mission forward alongside her daughters.

 


"My desire is that the fragment sculptures can artistically articulate that there is beauty behind brokenness,” says O’Reilly Barlow. Interi means “whole” in Italian and through the precious gems and natural specimens, we are making a piece whole again. These precious artifacts remind me that what is deemed as insignificant and broken is not beyond restoration, but can be transformed into something much more beautiful than before. It’s just like us, we are all made more beautiful in and not in spite of trials and tribulation. But we must be willing to offer others that hope and Interi’s mission and vision is to do just that."

The event will take place on July 26th in the sanctuary of St. Mark's English Church at 6 pm. The pieces exhibited willbe available for purchase and 15% of the proceeds will go towards International Justice Mission. To learn more about Interi’s initiative, go to
https://interionline.com/pages/more-than-a-fragment. 
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Interi Presents The Florence Collection with Florence University of the Arts

June 23rd - August 3rd, 2022.

Florence flood of 1966

Interi is set to premier a major exhibition of historic fragment artifacts found from the infamous Florence flood with Florence University of the Arts this summer. The exhibition will take place at FUA's gallery showcasing Interi's Florence Collection. This collection is made up of carefully curated and created sculptures from the collection of historic fragment artifacts found from the flooding of the Arno in 1966. This particular flood was the worst recorded since the Renaissance. After days of severe and heavy rainfall, the Arno River flooded and submerged the Tuscan streets. Along with the thousands of masterpieces of art and rare books, tons of mud and rubble severely damaged or destroyed the artifacts in the very churches they adorned.


Years ago, Barlow began to take interest and buy these fragments out of her own fascination. Now, she has great difficulty finding any more. The collection of distressed ecclesiastical relics have been preserved and transformed by Barlow using rare natural specimens from all around the world to create historic yet contemporary sculptural works. By incorporating the rare minerals, it looks as though the pieces evolved together over time.


“Each one has been recreated and reveals a new interpretation,” says Barlow. “What was submerged and stripped of its color and meaning still retains its history and beauty. What was weathered and worn is now reimagined and reborn. What was lost is now found.”


The exhibition will premiere on June 23rd at the Corridoio Fiorentino gallery of Italian international university, Florence University of the Arts and will run until August 3rd. It will be open to students and the public. Barlow will also collaborate with students and guest lecture during the duration of the exhibition. To find out more about the event, email us at info@interionline.com.