Stefania Artusi Khalfi is an artist and researcher and works under the name of Gio Peres. She earned her degree in Visual Arts from the UdK (Berlin University of the Arts) in 2020, where she studied under Prof. Ai WeiWei and Prof. Hito Steyerl. As a multidisciplinary artist, her practice explores themes of identity and gender, with a particular focus on the cyclical tensions between violence, identity, and belonging. Her research focuses on the Mediterranean region, examining porous identities and the liminal spaces they inhabit.

Her doctoral research at CREAM employs both theoretical and practice-based methodologies to investigate female piracy as a radical form of resistance and its legacy in contemporary Mediterranean narratives. The study seeks to reclaim female piracy as a historically significant, yet often overlooked, form of agency, particularly in how pirate societies subverted dominant social structures. By examining the fluid, transnational networks of piracy—where exiles, refugees, and marginalized individuals found autonomy—this research contributes to broader discussions on gender, resistance, and border politics in the Mediterranean.