On October 6, SPINES, a temporary exhibition by visual artist and tattooist Inyan (Roberta Chia), opened at DUDE in Bologna, Italy. Featuring more than 18 works, the exhibition brings together different sides of an artistic practice built around watercolor, botanical forms, abstraction, and color.
Based in Bologna, Inyan works across several media, from watercolor painting and textile decoration to tattooing. Her tattoo work is recognizable for its fluid compositions, floral imagery, translucent color transitions, and an approach that responds closely to the natural lines and movement of the body.
With SPINES, this visual language moves away from its usual placement on skin and into an exhibition setting. Rather than separating tattooing from the artist’s other work, the show reveals the common vocabulary behind them: color, organic shapes, delicate transitions, and compositions that seem to develop freely instead of following rigid boundaries.
The title itself works on two levels. In English, spines can refer both to the sharp structures protecting cacti and succulents and to the spine that supports the human body. This dual meaning becomes the conceptual starting point for an exhibition centered on endurance and the ability to remain present within circumstances that cannot always be controlled.
At the center of SPINES is the idea of abiding: not conquering or attempting to dominate everything around us, but remaining, adapting, and allowing events to pass through us. The cactus becomes a natural metaphor for that condition — surviving in an inhospitable landscape not through constant movement, but through resilience and adaptation.
The concept also connects directly with the exhibition venue. DUDE, a recently opened bar in the center of Bologna, takes its identity from the cult film The Big Lebowski and its central character, The Dude. Against the confusion surrounding him, the character persists in his own peculiar way — another interpretation of the same idea of endurance that runs through the exhibition.
The venue is celebrating its first anniversary this October. Alongside exhibitions by emerging local artists, DUDE hosts a weekly program of acoustic performances and DJ sets ranging from folk and rock to jazz. In this context, SPINES becomes part of a broader dialogue between independent cultural spaces and artists working within Bologna.
For Inyan, however, the exhibition also offers another perspective on work that tattoo audiences usually encounter directly on the human body. Seen across painting, handcrafted objects and tattooing, her practice demonstrates how the same artistic language can change when its surface changes — while retaining the characteristics that make it immediately recognizable.
SPINES — Inyan (Roberta Chia)
Dates: October 6–31, 2026
Venue: DUDE
Address: Via Rialto 10A, Bologna, Italy
Opening hours: Tuesday–Sunday, 6 PM–1 AM
Admission: Free
The exhibition includes more than 18 works and will remain open throughout October during DUDE’s regular opening hours.
Artist: @inyantattoo
Venue: @dude__bologna
