Gerardo Cleto is an artist working with relational practices and site-specific processes. His research focuses on the construction of new shared imaginaries and the narration of territories, through an attitude of presence and production within the contexts in which he operates.
His work unfolds in dialogue with local communities, activating dynamics of exchange, care, and co-creation. Relationship is the primary material of his artistic process, which takes shape through narrative devices, collective actions, and site&people-specific installations.
From 2014 to 2019, he attended the New Technologies of Art laboratory at the Academy of Fine Arts in Naples, where he explored collaborative practices in artistic and social contexts. From 2019 to 2023, he was part of the directive board of La Rivoluzione delle Seppie, a hyper-collective active in Calabria, contributing to the development and realization of workshops, residencies, and cultural activation projects.
For the project Benvenuti a Belmondo, La Rivoluzione delle Seppie was selected in the “Design for Social Impact” category of the Compasso d’Oro Award 2021 and included in the ADI Design Index of the same year. In 2023, the project Belmondo Tracks was one of the eight selected to represent the Italian Pavilion at the 18th International Architecture Exhibition of the Venice Biennale.
For the academic year 2024-25, he was artist-in-residence in the Design des Territoires program at the École des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, where he developed two site-specific projects in Île-de-France: one in the Larris neighborhood of Fontenay-sous-Bois (94120), and in Parc de la Villette in Paris (19e). The processes activated during this residency culminated in a collective exhibition within the 13th edition of the Biennale Internationale Design Saint-Étienne 2025.