L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MAY 17, 2018 www.italoamericano.org L'Italo-Americano 2 I n a picture, we don't simply see what's in front of the lenses or on the other side of the camera. Beside the subject, the frame's composition and angle, the choice of the right timing and lighting, beside the techniques applied, we'll find the eye of the photographer, with his or her ability to seize the right moment, detail, revealing look. We'll find his or her sensibility in choosing the right subject, the right feeling, in capturing one gesture instead of another. We'll find his or her view of what's happening, his or her presence in places and events where not everyone can be: a photographer sees for us all and bears visual witness to what happens. We'll also find his or her point of view, which is more than the distance from the photographed subject, more than perspective and more than the angle given to the shot, it is what he or she wants to see, a very personal taste in understanding and representing the world around. Inside a photographer's eye, we find the ability to look beyond what's visible, to travel past appearances to capture the essence of an event, the soul of a person or the history of a place: we find the ability to transform a snapshot in a piece of history. In a time dominated by images, quick and many, that travel continuously beside us, and in a society where, smartphone perennially in our hands, we're always ready to compulsively shot and share selfies, the sandwich we're having for lunch, the friend we meet in the street, the place we stand - with none of these images being necessary, in times like these, we're literally bombed by redundant, insignificant snaps. For this reason, what can make a difference in a photo, what really becomes meaningful still of a landscape or of a person's life, and potentially turn into the symbol of an epoch is not the image, but rather the reflection and the narration within and behind it. "Within" because that picture is synthesis of something more, of a deeper thought and a wider look. It has a meaning that goes beyond appearances, it is an instant taken out of its context, which manages to become effective summary of something much bigger. "Behind" The intimate art of photography tells us of worlds and experiences From the director because that same image is never taken by chance, but it's the result of a path, part of a reportage, page of a tale. Artistic photography is, indeed, something that can say more than what everyone sees: it holds a story within, an unknown point of view, a state of mind. And when photographers bring their attention on people and their places, on the backstage of humanity, on the most intimate and common of contexts, then photography turns into an historical tale about an ever-evolving society and its landscapes, it talks about changes, about time passing, about trends and traditions, to become a deep reflection on who we were, we are and where we're headed. Some photographers managed to portray Italy and Italians better than others: their photos either made a difference or seized it, immortalizing images of the past that, still today, are able to vividly deliver a social conquest, the values of a civic battle, the evolution of rural society and of cities that indulged and destroyed human dreams and needs, the change of mores. These photos are testimonies, indictments, demonstrations of achieved redemption, freeing evidence, social theses. At the same time, they are art because of their incredible capability to synthesize, because of their humanity and sensibility, because of their ability to empathize with the portrayed subject, because they are works filled with values, because they exude feelings and create emotions. Only a handful of seconds before that "clic" that brings into focus the image with its light, colors and timing, the photographed subject was only one of the many available, there was only an indefinite, casual horizon. Within the time of that shot, a photographer's evaluations, experience and sensibility created meaning. That shot, which catches and represents a specific moment in time, is different from all other possible images, and turns into a small, yet fundamental shard of knowledge. Because of this, photography is often viewed as a sociological essay, and needs to be read properly, without forgetting, however, that it remains extremely subjective and it is a form of intimate, essential art. It always contains a point of view, it's never neutral, nor objective. On the contrary, it's profoundly subjective and this means that within the portrayed landscape, face, object, there's a lot of the photographer, too. There is his or her work, research, his or her way of telling a story and his or her wish to leave a sign of what was witnessed and experienced, of the mark left also by other men and women in time and societies. Simone Schiavinato, Director NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS

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