Reggio Emilia, at the Palazzo dei Musei the Luigi Ghirri Award with a group show of photographers under 35

From April 28 to June 11, 2023, the Palazzo dei Musei in Reggio Emilia will host the tenth edition of Young Italian Photography #10 | Luigi Ghirri Prize 2023, entitled Belonging. Moving to the new venue, the exhibition project, supported by international collaborations, involves talented photographers under 35: Eleonora Agostini, Andrea Camiolo, Sofiya Chotyrbok, Davide Degano, Carlo Lombardi, Giulia Mangione and Eleonora Paciullo, selected by an international jury from more than four hundred candidates.

The group exhibition will investigate the theme of belonging and the definition of identity through different points of view: from the personal relationship with wild animals to the relationship between individuality and belonging to a social role, from artificial intelligence to the rediscovery of identity and belonging, from the reflection on the concept of Italian identity to the popular myths around the theme of the Apocalypse, to the rituals related to the magical place of childhood. The sense of belonging is a fundamental need of human beings, yet many phenomena over the last generation have challenged the social and relational structures to which we were accustomed. Today, different ways of understanding belonging are emerging: on the one hand, inclusion in a community with an already defined identity, which depending on the contexts can be a form of oppression or resistance; on the other hand, a libertarian drive to join new forms of collectivity on the basis of value choices: from micro-communities to the construction of larger cultural areas, such as Europe itself, to new global concepts such as species belonging or holistic belonging to Nature; not to mention relations of belonging that invest the most intimate sphere.

There are seven declinations of the theme Belonging:

A Study on Waitressing by Eleonora Agostini is presented as a collection of photographs, archival images, collages, moving images and texts that examines the phenomena of self-representation. The project interrogates the fictionalized image of the waitress through the figure of the artist’s mother and her postures, movements and behaviors while working, studying the relationship between individuality and belonging to a social role.

Andrea Camiolo ’sThe Manhattan Project features artificial intelligence-generated and then manipulated images that simulate archival photographs, starting with those contained in Evidence, a celebrated volume published in 1977 by Larry Sultan and Mike Mandel. Images that are not real, of which it is difficult to say who they belong to, yet speak of reality and the present.

Home Before Dark was born out of the renunciation of the artist, Sofiya Chotyrbok, of her Ukrainian citizenship in favor of her adopted Italian citizenship. This biographical episode gave rise to a creative process of identity rediscovery and belonging, through images that combine self-portraiture, staged photography, collage and archival research.

Romanzo Meticcio by Davide Degano is an invitation to question the concept of Italian identity, giving centrality to habitually marginalized elements. The images weave together themes such as the suburbs, the South, minorities, immigration, second-generation Italians and the removal of the colonial past, highlighting connections between the past and the present.

In The Flesh of the Bear, Carlo Lombardi makes an investigation into the ethical, symbolic and anthropological evolution of social practices protecting Apennine bears over the past hundred years. His research establishes a narrative aimed at instilling doubt in our understanding of our personal relationship with wild animals.

Giulia Mangione combines documentary photography and fiction to reflect on society’s collective fears. The Fall looks at popular myths around the theme of the Apocalypse and related conspiracy theories, observing how belonging to a community or religious cult can make people feel safer and more secure

Eleonora Paciullo ’sTheophanies stems from her return to a small town in Locride, Calabria, to which her origins are linked. Through photography, documentation and performance, the artist reclaimed the rituals, myths and stories of the area in an attempt to bring to life the “re-enchantment” of the magical place of her childhood.

On the occasion of the European Photography Festival, the exhibition will open to the public on Friday, April 28, at 7 p.m., while on Sunday, April 30, at 11 a.m. visitors can take part in a guided tour led by curators Ilaria Campioli and Daniele De Luigi, together with the artists involved. Following this, the winners of the “Luigi Ghirri Prize” and the special mention “New Trajectories. GFI in Stockholm.”

For the following Saturdays: May 6, 13, 20 and June 10, there will be free guided tours at 6 p.m.
All events will take place at Palazzo dei Musei in Reggio Emilia. Reservations are recommended at 0522 456816.

Young Italian Photography #10 | Luigi Ghirri Prize 2023 is promoted by the Municipality of Reggio Emilia, in partnership with the Italian Cultural Institute of Stockholm and Triennale Milano. It sees from this year the presence of Crédit Agricole Italia as Cultural partner.
The initiative is also carried out in collaboration with GAI - Association for the Circuit of Young Italian Artists, Fotografia Europea, Panoràmic Festival of Granollers, Barcelona; Fotofestiwal Łódź in Poland; Photoworks, Brighton and with the contribution of Reire srl, which has been accompanying the project since its inception and confirms the support initiated in previous years.

Image: © Eleonora Paciullo, Teofanie

Reggio Emilia, at the Palazzo dei Musei the Luigi Ghirri Award with a group show of photographers under 35

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