PhEST international photography and art festival returns to Monopoli. Also a retrospective on Man Ray

PhEST - See Beyond the Sea, the international photography and art festival, returns to Monopoli for its ninth edition, from August 30 to November 3, 2024. The Apulian coastal town will once again turn into a vibrant center of intercultural dialogue, welcoming world-renowned artists and creative talents. The streets, squares, historic buildings and ancient churches of Monopoli will be the setting for this lively event.

The theme chosen for this edition is the Dream, in homage to 100 years of Surrealism, the artistic and literary movement that revolutionized the collective imagination with its first manifesto, written by André Breton in 1924. PhEST 2024 celebrates the omnipotence of the dream and the free play of thought, exploring these themes in all their facets. As Artistic Director Giovanni Troilo says, “The streets are full of admirable craftsmen, but few practical dreamers said Man Ray, but we will fill the streets of Monopoly this year with practical dreamers from all over the world.”

Indeed, one of the flagship projects of this edition is the retrospective dedicated to Man Ray, one of the greatest interpreters of surrealist poetics. In collaboration with the Historical Archives of Contemporary Arts of La Biennale di Venezia, PhEST will exhibit a selection of original photographs from the Man Ray exhibition, testimony through photography presented at the 1976 Venice Biennale. The selection of works from the anthological exhibition La révolution du Regard, curated by Roberto Lacarbonara and Giovanni Troilo, constitutes a small compendium of the vast exploration of the photographic medium, from studies of the face, the body, and forms, to the darkroom printing techniques that Man Ray pioneered, such as solarization and rayography. In addition to the retrospective devoted to Man Ray, there are 33 exhibitions and installations by international artists on the program. These include All Humans Be Cats, a project carried out as an art residency by Jan von Holleben, a German photographer known for his exploration of the concept of “homo ludens,” combining pedagogical theory with play experiences and childhood memories. The project involved 800 children from Monopoli’s 4 Comprehensive Institutes, who transformed their dreams into fun and allegorical photo shoots, which were exhibited at Monopoli’s Porto Vecchio for the duration of the festival.

PhEST 2024 will feature artists and professionals from around the world, selected by artistic director Giovanni Troilo and curated by Arianna Rinaldo for photography. Exhibitions, masterclasses, portfolio reviews, concerts and installations will engage the creative community and enthusiasts who reach the historic center of Monopoli each year. Works on display include Gauri Gill & Rajesh Vangad’s symbolic dreams, Ismail Ferdous and Matthias Jung’s dreams of belonging, Natalie Karpushenko’s immersive dreams, Valentina Vannicola’s reinterpretations of Dante’s cantica, and the American Dream, analyzed in Richard Sharum’s work. In addition, Paolo Ventura’s painted, interpreted and photographed dream worlds and César Dezfuli’s migrant dream project will offer a profound reflection on the epilogue of dreams.

For the curatorship of contemporary art, Roberto Lacarbonara has once again taken on the role of curator, involving artist Davide Monaldi, a ceramist and sculptor, who will present his ironic and cynical imagery, populated by hybrid and alien figures, in perfect harmony with the theme of dreams.

For info: https://www.phest.info/

PhEST international photography and art festival returns to Monopoli. Also a retrospective on Man Ray

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