Andreas Gursky
The photo was taken in 2016 at the end of a long series of difficulties encountered in obtaining authorization from the company which, as is well known, has been at the center of controversy several times regarding the difficult working conditions of its employees. However, the image was not conceived by the author with a critical intent towards the "Amazon System", but rather simply as a mirror image of the times, as a symbolic place of the current economic and social situation. Scanning visually to the top part of the frame, we notice vertical block lettering displayed on the pillars of the room: it is the company's unsettling motto meant to encourage and entice workers throughout the day, "work hard, have fun, make history." Globalization, capitalism, the pervasiveness of consumerism, and its becoming an essential daily reality are indeed some of the themes most explored in the works of the German artist.
PROJECT
Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin
"From the beginning, almost every appearance of his has been catastrophic... Catastrophe is his operational medium and his central tool of governance." The violence, calamities, and absurdity of war are extensively documented within the Archive of Modern Conflict, the world's largest photographic collection of its kind. In "Holy Bible," Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin select images keeping in mind the central principle of the philosopher Adi Ophir: that God predominantly reveals Himself through catastrophe, and that the power structures within the Bible are correlated to those within modern systems of governance. The illustrated "Holy Bible" by Broomberg and Chanarin has the same structure and physical form as the King James Bible. The elements of the original text interact with the selection of images juxtaposed on the pages.
PROJECT
Giorgio Gaber
Tu sei un ingenuo
Tu sei un ingenuo, perché credi che la politica possa risolvere i problemi
Cercare oggi di cambiare le condizioni di vita del Paese
Con qualsiasi tipo di politica è come fare un po' di pulizie
A bordo del Titanic che sta affondando
Tu sei un ingenuo, anche quando credi
Che un po' di misticismo di seconda mano ti possa salvare
E allora tu mi dirai, "Non c'è salvezza"
No, questo non si può dire
Le risorse dell'uomo sono imprevedibili
Si potrebbe forse cominciare a pensare o anche a operare
Nel senso di un cambiamento sostanziale dell'animale uomo
Una specie di mutazione antropologica
Larry Sultan
The cast and crew are gathered in the front yard of a ranch-style house, not far from my high school in the San Fernando Valley. Women in six-inch heels sink into the grass. Adult film companies often shoot in suburban homes, against a backdrop of personal photos and decorations that give the films their unique look. It's as if a family left for a vacation, leaving everything behind, and another, peculiar group of unrelated adults temporarily moved in. As the crew works in the living room, I explore, feeling like a detective uncovering clues about the residents. These films transform lazy afternoons with unexpected desires of delivery people and babysitters, unfolding in familiar settings like our own backyards. Photographing this, I am caught between fascination and discomfort, belonging and alienation. I am back home again.
PROJECT
Marco Zonzarello
In recent years, records of temperatures and weather-related calamities indicate the current impact of climate change. This project, developed in various locations, explores the tourism sector's reaction to such changes. Tourism, accounting for 10% of the global GDP, is crucial for the middle class. The project analyzes, with irony, the effects of climate change on lifestyle. In Canada, Iceland, and Greenland, tourists visit places affected by climate changes. The Maldives, threatened by rising sea levels, are transforming into a sort of Atlantis due to excessive tourism and environmental alterations. With an ironic perspective, the project explores the global impacts of climate change on our daily lives.
PROJECT
Richard Long
This piece was created during one of Long's trips to St Martin from his home in Bristol. Between hitchhiking rides, he stopped in a field in Wiltshire where he walked back and forth until the flattened grass caught the sunlight and became visible as a line. He photographed this work and recorded his physical interventions in the landscape. Although this artwork emphasizes the bodily presence of the artist, it anticipates a widespread interest in the practice of performance art. This work demonstrates how Long had already found a visual language to express his concerns about impermanence, movement, and relativity.
Godfrey Reggio
"Evidence" is reflected in the eyes of children watching television, in this case, Walt Disney's "Dumbo." Although engaged in a daily routine, they appear drugged, slowed down, like patients in a psychiatric hospital. "Evidence" concerns the behavior of children watching television, an activity whose physiological aspects have been overlooked in the current controversy surrounding television.
The minimalist
The Minimalists have created 16 rules for organizing effectively and reassessing the amount of possessions one has and tends to acquire: the No-Junk Rule, the Seasonality Rule, the Just-in-Case Rule, the Gift Rule, and twelve other rules. These are compiled in an ebook, which is available for free download.
PROJECT
Nanni moretti
"Ecce Bombo," directed and starred by Nanni Moretti in 1978, explores the life of Michele, a neurotic and confrontational character, and his group of friends in Rome during the Years of Lead. Among them are Silvia, who is involved in cinema, Goffredo, a lackadaisical student, Mirko, concerned about the future of society, and Vito, a lazy employee. The film reflects on the search for a sense of belonging and serenity in a changing world. Moretti, with strict direction and a nuanced performance, investigates the human psyche and its relationship with society, addressing themes such as the generational abyss, communication, individualism, and alienation. "Ecce Bombo" represents a milestone in Moretti's career, offering a critical and often merciless look at Italy, highlighting the opacity and ambiguity of the world surrounding the characters.
Jacopo Farina and Cosmo
Anti-pop of Jacopo Farina begins during a concert that resembles a rave, while the voice-over monologue of the protagonist, Cosmo, tries to convey the sensations of a moment and a life that, following a tortuous and nonlinear path, has led him there. It's a challenging career, as it can be in Italy, which has always seen the desire of a musician to make a living from his work as something of an anomaly. It's as difficult as coming from the deep province of Ivrea with its red towers: where a carnival more violent and crazy than any imaginable Halloween looms over the autobiographical story of Marco Jacopo Bianchi, known as Cosmo.