Critical commentary by Elsa Dezuanni
"[...] Around 2005, while discovering the potential of the line to define form, Sonego gradually weakened the material; the original emotional vision of "things" was transformed into a flat painting experiment, in which the contents were arranged in a rhythmic order on the background of large fields and made recognizable by the contours of fluid and decisive lines, and by slightly hinted decorative details: a pillow, a drawer, or the design of a tapestry. The increasing stylization given to the constituent elements of the painting has therefore led her to invest the sign with the task of developing the vitality of the whole, making it strong and robust in its ability to give identity to the various subjects-objects, and at the same time subtle in conferring on them an apparent three-dimensionality, in creations also of large dimensions. In doing so, the palette moved towards refined combinations: harmoniously calm those orchestrated on grays and ochres, brilliantly sparkling those dominated by reds, but always coordinated by the presence of black, which links one object to another, one work to another. It should be noted that the subjects of her depictions are often the "things" that surround her in the domestic sphere or the "facts" related to the private sphere.
A turning point in 2011 is marked by the long canvas titled Fluxus 1 (one meter and thirty by eight and a half!), in which the narrative components - until then evident in Sonego's poetics - are no longer decipherable, as if the author's new syntax had become an alphabet of the mind, for a language that still constitutes her very personal signature. On fields that determine the spatiality of the work, the "things" appear transformed into variously defined shapes - among which only the repetition of a pitcher remains distinguishable - and they animate the composition of a swarm that has a rotational movement; a movement that is only apparent, however, because on closer inspection, each element is in its proper place in the overall structural balance. The vivid timbral highlights are part of the dynamism of the work, which however does not diminish even when only the black sign on an all-white or all-red background is used to weave the tale on the canvas. The titles clarify the intent of the narration, such as "Under the Moon," "The Weeping Fruit Bowl," "Splashes," ..., or "Argia," a literary reference to Italo Calvino's "Invisible Cities." In transitioning from the representation of the visible, as previously mentioned, to that - which to the observer appears rich and mysterious - of one's own interiority, Sonego continues to generate a contagious energy with a skillful technique."
(excerpt from the catalog of the exhibition "Art is good for the heart," 9th edition, 2017)
