NERO is an international publishing house devoted to art, criticism and contemporary culture. Founded in Rome in 2004, it publishes artists’ books, catalogs, editions and essays.

NERO explores present and future imaginaries beyond any field of specialization, format or code – as visual arts, music, philosophy, politics, aesthetics or fictional narrations – extensively investigating unconventional perspectives and provocative outlooks to decipher the essence of this ever changing reality.

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Girolamo da Cotignola, Due vedute di città, 1520.

Phase One Mantra

An ever-increasing taxonomy of the pandemic

The following text is a diary, or a sub-dictionary, if you like: a list of words we have been hearing or reading since the lockdown started in Italy on March 9th, as a measure to contain the COVID-19 outbreak. The exceeding information to which we’ve been subjected during these weeks has developed around the reiteration of certain phrases, or single words, spoken like a mantra, a watchword or a slogan. Some key words have been abandoned pretty quickly by the public discourse, others have stuck around for weeks. Every few days a new word or a new expression is born, and it immediately starts circulating in press briefings, newspapers articles, tv programs, public and private conversations, social networks, chats and telephone calls with friends and relatives. These are words we all have been saying during this time. A time that has not passed yet, as  the list keeps being open and unfinished. It’s the starting point of an infinite diary, that could potentially be adjourned for a long time, representing a new sub-lexicon: the Italian language for the pandemic.

Girolamo da Cotignola, Due vedute di città, 1520.

i beni fondamentali, i servizi essenziali, il distanziamento sociale, il digital divide, la solidarietà digitale, Pornhub Premium, i wet market, il droplet, i droni, i tamponi, l’allerta, l’allentamento, Atalanta-Valencia, il video sull’Avigan, la sperimentazione in Veneto, la psicosi, la cassa integrazione, il Fondo Salva Stati, lo stato d’emergenza, i test sierologici, i termometri a infrarossi, gli immunodepressi, i sintomatici, gli asintomatici, i falsi positivi, il trend negativo, le patologie preesistenti, i pazienti, i farmaci anti-artrite, gli anticoagulanti, gli anticorpi, i guanti, le trasmissioni, il Tgr Leonardo, il pattugliamento aereo di Pomeriggio Cinque, la diretta della Protezione Civile, le repliche in prima serata, la seconda ondata, l’entrata contingentata, il contenimento, i contagi, il contact tracing, i cluster, le sanificazioni, il lanciafiamme, la potenza di fuoco, il focolaio, la zona rossa, il lavoro nero, Azzurro, il Bluetooth, il patto di stabilità, le garanzie costituzionali, le clausole di salvaguardia, il quantitative easing, il revenge spending, il crollo del petrolio, la recessione, le ordinanze, il dl Liquidità, il decreto Chiudi Italia, le chiese chiuse, la messa col filtro aerobica, le cardio pulizie, i lifestyle guru, Confindustria, gli scioperi, il vertice Ue, il Consiglio europeo, l’Eurogruppo, gli Eurobond, il Recovery Fund, il tavolo con le opposizioni, la cabina di regia, la stretta del governo, il Consiglio dei Ministri, il dl Coronavirus, i Coronabond, il Corona Care, la pizza Corona, la birra, i buoni spesa, i compleanni, la riapertura, la riconversione, i runner, i rider, le ambulanze, le pattuglie, le strade vuote, il traffico in rete, le sale web, le web radio, i tour virtuali, le room su Houseparty, l’Home Gym, i Drive-in, l’eparina, l’Amuchina, le ricette mediche su WhatsApp, l’immunità di gregge, le reti unificate, le fosse comuni, l’app Immuni, gli schermi parafiato, la tosse secca, il tasso di crescita, le tasse, le task force, i pieni poteri, la pandemia globale, l’endemia, il modello coreano, l’Europa al bivio, il Piano Marshall, Schengen, la chiusura delle frontiere, le segnalazioni, la delazione, le misure restrittive, le proteste nelle carceri, l’indulto, Harvey Weinstein, le celle telefoniche, le case, i balconi, andrà tutto bene, gli applausi, i kit diagnostici su Wish, Speranza, il supercommissario, #milanononsiferma, i tutorial, gli streaming, l’e-learning, il coaching online, i webinar, il maxi colloquio di maturità, le tesi su Zoom, gli aperiSkype, i video virali, la virologa dalla Florida, l‘infettivologo su Twitter, la corrispondente dal Sacco, l’ospite da casa, il leader senza claque, la delegazione albanese, la coppia cinese, il trentottenne di Codogno, la mascherina egoista, le bimbe di Giuseppe Conte, Agamben, i soggetti a rischio, i cani al guinzaglio, i figli a passeggio, i coronials, i pipistrelli, la tigre del Bronx, i pinguini in visita all’acquario, le anatre nella Barcaccia, il Papa a piazza San Pietro, i delfini al porto di Cagliari, i canali di Venezia, il plexiglas in spiaggia, gli occhiali appannati, la curva epidemica, la piega del gomito, il segno della mascherina, le linee guida, la linea di febbre, la prima linea, mai più come prima, il prima e il dopo, i nomi e cognomi, la patente di immunità, le autocertificazioni, la carta igienica, i testicoli, la conference call, la libreria buona alle spalle, Spillover, il divano, i sintomi, la congiuntivite, la perdita dell’olfatto, il gusto, le torte, il lievito, le penne lisce, i topi vivi, convivere con il virus, il plasma, il plateau, il picco, l’aumento dei casi, i numeri della Lombardia, il paziente 1, la fase 2, il 3 aprile, le 4 D di Fontana, il 5G, il 6 politico, i 750 miliardi, i 200 metri da casa, il bonus 600 euro, Tokyo 2021, la febbre a 37, gli over 65, il 118, il bollettino delle 18, i 14 giorni di isolamento, i 52 medici cubani, un anno per il vaccino, un minuto di silenzio, un metro di distanza, il PM10, il Pil, la Bce, il Mes, il Def, i Dpcm, le Ong, l’Oms, le Rsa, l’Indice R0, l’interprete Lis, il sito dell’Inps, le partite Iva, lo smart working, i senzatetto, l’assistenza domiciliare, #iorestoacasa, le case di cura, la procura, il Cura Italia, la tenuta del paese, i paesi rigoristi, gli stati del sud, l’esodo dal nord, l’ospedale in Fiera, gli assembramenti, il collasso, i russi stanziati a Bergamo, i centri Covid, le tende di pre-triage, il personale senza protezioni, il bando assunzioni, i volontari, i turni, le corsie, le terapie intensive, i posti letto, le maschere da snorkeling come respiratori, i tablet per dirsi addio, i sacerdoti in quarantena, gli infermieri a benedire, la cerimonia su Facebook, il cordoglio dei familiari, il convoglio di camionette, la coda di carri funebri, la fila all’Esselunga, il mercato di Wuhan

 

Girolamo da Cotignola, Due vedute di città, 1520.

 

fundamental goods, essential services, social distancing, digital divide, digital solidarity, Pornhub Premium, wet markets, droplet, drones, swabs, alert, loosening, Atalanta-Valencia, the video on the Avigan, the experimentation in Veneto, psychosis, layoffs, the Save States Fund, the state of emergency, serological tests, infrared thermometers, immunosuppressed, symptomatic, asymptomatic, false positives, negative trend, pre-existing diseases, patients, anti-arthritis drugs, anticoagulants, antibodies, gloves, transmissions, Tgr Leonardo, the air patrol of Pomeriggio Cinque, the Civil Protection live broadcast, prime time replicas , the second wave, the contingent entry, containment, contagion, contact tracing, clusters, sanitisation, the flamethrower, the firepower, the hotbed, red zone, black work, Blue, Bluetooth, the Stability Pack, constitutional guarantees, safeguard clauses, quantitative easing, revenge spending, the collapse of oil, the recession, ordinances, the liquidity decree, the “Close Italy” decree, the closed churches, the mess with the aerobic filter, the cardio cleaners, lifestyle gurus, Confindustria, strikes, the EU summit, the European Council, the Eurogroup, the Eurobonds, the Recovery Fund, the table with the oppositions, the control room, the government squeeze, the Council of Ministers, the dl (decree-law) Coronavirus, the Coronabonds, the Corona Care, the Corona pizza, the beer, the vouchers, the birthdays, the reopening, the conversion, the runners, the riders, the ambulances, the patrols, the empty streets, the network traffic, web rooms, web radios, virtual tours, rooms on Houseparty, Home Gym, Drive-ins, heparin, Amuchina, medical recipes on WhatsApp, herd immunity, unified networks, mass graves, the Immunity App, breath protection screens, dry cough, the growth rate, taxes, task forces, full powers, the global pandemic, the endemic, the Korean model, Europe at the crossroad, the Marshall Plan, Schengen, the closure of borders, the reports, the delation, the restrictive measures, the protests in prisons, the pardon, Harvey Weinstein, the cell phones, the houses, the balconies, everything will be fine, the applause, the diagnostic kits on Wish, Speranza, the super commissioner, #milanononsiferma, tutorials, streaming, e-learning, online coaching, webinars, maxi-maturity interview, theses on Zoom, aperiSkype, viral videos, virologist from Florida, infectious disease specialist on Twitter, the correspondent dal Sacco, the guest from home, the leader without claque, the Albanian delegation, the Chinese couple, the thirty-eight year old from Codogno, the selfish mask, le bimbe di Giuseppe Conte, Agamben, the subjects at risk, the dogs on a leash, the walking children, coronials, bats, the Bronx tiger, the penguins visiting the aquarium, the ducks in the Barcaccia, the Pope in San Pietro square, the dolphins at the port of Cagliari, the canals of Venice, the Plexiglas on the beach, the misted glasses, the epidemic curve, the bend of the elbow, the sign of the mask, the guidelines, the fever line, the first line, never as before, the before and after, the names and surnames, the immunity license, the self-certifications, the toilet paper, the testicles, the conference call, the good bookshop behind you, Spillover, the sofa, symptoms, conjunctivitis, loss of smell, taste, cakes, yeast, smooth pens, live mice, living with the virus, plasma , the plateau, the peak, the increase in cases, the numbers in Lombardy, the patient 1, the phase 2, April 3rd, the 4 D of Fontana, the 5G, the political 6, the 750 billion, the 200 meters from home, the 600 euro bonus, Tokyo 2021, the fever at 37°, the over 65, the 118, the bulletin of 18, the 14 days of isolation, the 52 m you say Cubans, one year for the vaccine, one minute of silence, one meter away, the PM10, the GDP, the ECB, the Mes, the Def, the Dpcm, the NGOs, the WHO, the RSA, the R0 Index, the Lis interpreter, the INPS website, the VAT numbers, smart working, the homeless, home care, #iorestoacasa, nursing homes, the power of attorney, Cura Italia, the estate of the country, the rigorist countries, the Southern regions, the exodus from the North, the hospital at the Fair, the gatherings, the collapse, the Russians stationed in Bergamo, the Covid centers, the pre-triage tents, the staff without protections, the ban hiring, volunteers, shifts, lanes, intensive care, beds, snorkeling masks like respirators, tablets to say goodbye, quarantined priests, nurses to bless, ceremony on Facebook, condolences from family members, the convoy of trucks, the queue of funeral cars, the queue at the Esselunga, the Wuhan market.

 

Jacopo Rinaldi (Italy, 1988) is a multi-disciplinary visual artist based in Rome. His work is characterized by a research-based practice involving public archives, private libraries and databases.