Born in the industrial city of Turin, Alighiero Boetti briefly studied business and economics before starting his career as a self-taught artist. His first solo exhibition at Christian Stein gallery in Turin in 1967 took place during the emergence of Arte Povera he explored for a while. He then turned to conceptual art using symmetry, multiplication, and duplication. Later, his work focused on categorization and communication codes. He experimented with a range of mediums and methods, evoking the craftsmanship of ancient Asia, while working with numbers, maps, and alphabets. Boetti's love for Afghanistan started in the early 1970s, when he made a few short journeys that eventually extended into extended periods. During this period, Boetti started working on his "Mappe" (Maps) in collaboration with Afghan women embroiderers, an iconic series reflecting the geopolitical environment of the world at the time of the realisation (1971–1994). Boetti's work was groundbreaking in that it established a paradigm where multiple people over the world, no matter how distant, could take part in the creative process, challenging the conventional notion of the artist's position and the meaning of chance, sequence, repetition, and authorship in the production of art.
Born in the industrial city of Turin, Alighiero Boetti briefly studied business and economics before starting his career as a self-taught artist. His first solo exhibition at Christian Stein gallery in Turin in 1967 took place during the emergence of Arte Povera he explored for a while. He then turned to conceptual art using symmetry, multiplication, and duplication. Later, his work focused on categorization and communication codes. He experimented with a range of mediums and methods, evoking the craftsmanship of ancient Asia, while working with numbers, maps, and alphabets. Boetti's love for Afghanistan started in the early 1970s, when he made a few short journeys that eventually extended into extended periods. During this period, Boetti started working on his "Mappe" (Maps) in collaboration with Afghan women embroiderers, an iconic series reflecting the geopolitical environment of the world at the time of the realisation (1971–1994). Boetti's work was groundbreaking in that it established a paradigm where multiple people over the world, no matter how distant, could take part in the creative process, challenging the conventional notion of the artist's position and the meaning of chance, sequence, repetition, and authorship in the production of art.