Valentina Pini's exhibition Water into Wine and her overall artistic practice revolve around the perception of illusion and reality. Pini's art is informed by alchemy – questions about materials, substances, and their transformations, the underlying physical laws, as well as their improbable connotations. Simultaneously, her practice, her experimentation with materials, is always enriched by narrative components. In her work, Pini daringly mixes sources, bearing inspiration from legends, ancient writings in philosophy, popular science, religion, and magic, creating her own connections and mythologies, building whole worlds. The photographs in the first room anticipate the installative character of the exhibition, creating a symbolic iconography with their strong clear aesthetic. Making installations for the photographs in her studio, the artist creates multi-layered illusions, tricking the viewers into guessing what they are really seeing. The sculptural series Ancient Gestures and The Communion of Pleasures depict delicate and intricate visions of seemingly quiet and surprising objects. Balancing on a fine line between the recognizable and the peculiar, the installations, rigorous and essential in form, captivate the observer through their transformative power, redirecting everyday objects to new and unresearched purposes. The wall sculptures from the series Throwing Bones add an element of mystery and tradition, connecting the various dimensions of Pini’s practice.