Musea Futuri is a research project born from the destruction of the collections of the National Museum of Rio de Janeiro and continuing today in Europe. The project questions the form and purpose of the contemporary museum, starting from the observation that the disappearance of physical objects opens the possibility of a museum founded on their surviving images. This “empty museum” would no longer be merely a space for preservation, but a speculative territory where memory, light, and photographic traces replace lost materiality. Between documentary investigation and critical fiction, Musea Futuri offers a visual reflection on the function of the museum in the postcolonial era. It questions the relationship between archives, power, and imagination, and attempts to reinvent a museology based on the circulation and survival of images.
Lívia Melzi
Lívia Melzi is a visual artist based between Arles and Paris. Her practice relies on photographic and archival research to question the role of European imagery in shaping Brazilian identity and history. She addresses themes of representation, museology, and anthropology through a decolonial approach. She has exhibited at the Salon de Montrouge where she received the Grand Prix (2021), Palais de Tokyo (2022), the Musée de Grenoble (2023), Maison de l’Amérique Latine (2025) and various international festivals.
Born in 1985 in Ribeirão Preto, Brazil, Lívia holds a master’s degree in oceanographyfrom the University of São Paulo (2012) and a master’s in photography and contemporary art from Paris 8 University (2018).
