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by Yvette Depaepe
Published the 9th of June 2025
Elizabeth Allen is highly successful in her narrative architectural photography, which often blends with street photography. She loves the geometric and abstract features of cities and enjoys finding different angles and perspectives that accentuate a wide variety of patterns, textures and colours. Elizabeth is a charming, warm-hearted lady with a positive outlook on life. In autumn/winter 2022/23, she exhibited a series of photographs at the Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth, England. Through sales of these photographs, she raised funds for people with ovarian cancer, a disease from which she was fortunate to recover thanks to excellent treatment at that hospital in 2020.
Enjoy this interview, which reveals the warm personality behind Elizabeth's excellent photographic work.
'Shapes and Shine II'
Dear Elizabeth, first, I would like to thank you for taking the time to answer this questionnaire. To begin with, could you please introduce yourself briefly and tell us more about yourself, your hobbies and any other projects you are involved in?
I was born in Portsmouth on England’s south coast, but eventually returned to live there after spending many years abroad. I am passionate about photography, which leaves me with little time for other hobbies. However, I have my younger son and granddaughter living in Bristol, and my elder son and his partner in Godalming, so I visit them regularly. My elder son is a much better photographer than I am, and he collects photography books, which I love browsing. (Godalming is a small town within easy reach of London.)
'Train Times'
How and when did you start your journey in photography?
I started after leaving school to attend the local art college. My father gave me his old camera, and I was also able to borrow a Minolta twin-lens reflex camera from the college. The following year, I left for Manchester School of Art, and by that time my brother had also left home, so my father converted a bedroom into a darkroom. Whenever I went home for the holidays, I loved spending time developing and printing my photos, watching what seemed like a magical process.
'The Fallen and the Survivor'
For many of us, photography is either a hobby or a way of life. How would you describe your relationship with photography?
For me, photography has recently become a way of life, as I am now able to devote plenty of time to it. This includes looking at the work of other photographers, as well as practising my own photography. It motivates me to visit new places and can also be very therapeutic on days when I am on my own. Although I spent four years at art school, my working life has centred around language teaching and writing, so it’s important to me that I can now engage with visual art again.
'Puddle Muddle'
What has been the most important experience so far that has influenced your journey in photography?
It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly, but my eldest son gave me my first digital camera in 2008, around the time that I started travelling more and finding inspiration. Initially, I didn’t focus on a particular genre, but when I visited Iceland in February 2017, I was surprised to find that I had taken more architectural photos than landscape images.
'Arab Baths, Palma'
What is it about architecture and abstract photography that you find so appealing?
I think I am actually attracted to extremes. I love photographing woodlands, whether it's trees or single leaves, as well as discovering the geometry of architecture and its abstract properties in cities. I love a wide variety of patterns, textures and colours, and I enjoy finding different angles and perspectives that accentuate these.
'Watching you'
Which is more important to you: the mood or story behind your images, or technical perfection?
While a certain level of technical skill is obviously required, I would argue that striving for technical perfection can result in soulless images. Therefore, I believe that mood and story are more important. When looking through photos on 1x, it's always the ones with atmosphere that make me stop and feel something. It's not easy to achieve, but it's a worthwhile goal.
'Under the Stairs'
What is your relationship with your subject matter beyond being an observer?
My subject matter is quite diverse, so my relationship with it varies. For example, there is a remarkable tree(not included in this article, but which can be found in my gallery). It was planted in 1609 in Oldbury Court Country Park in Bristol. I often go for walks there with my granddaughter, so precious memories are associated with the tree. I have photographed it in all weathers. At the other end of the scale, I enjoy taking street photos without being observed, so I don't interact with the people involved. Photos I capture at art exhibitions are somewhere in the middle: the artwork means a lot to me, but not the other visitors who are present.
'Outside In'
Do you carefully plan the locations where you intend to take photographs?
I don't think 'carefully' applies to me, as I like to keep an open mind about what I might find unexpectedly during a photography trip. For example, a few months ago, I went to Stratford in East London with the specific intention of photographing the Olympic Aquatic Centre, which was designed by Zaha Hadid. This proved to be a very challenging task, but while I was there, I discovered a row of buildings nearby that were under construction or had recently been completed. These included the V&A East and the London College of Fashion, which has a striking Brutalist staircase. I came away with far more photos than I had expected and have since been back for more.
'Under the Crystal'
Describe your overall photographic vision.
I hope that the photos I have chosen for this article convey an idea of my vision. While I love visiting iconic sites such as the Axel Towers in Copenhagen and the Tulip Stairs at the Queen's House in London, I haven't included photos of these places here because many other photographers have similar images. In most of my photos, I aim to offer a personal perspective, showcasing details with abstract qualities or places and scenes that others might overlook.
'Cycle City'
Could you tell us more about your workflow, from coming up with an idea to creating the final product?
When I take photos on my phone, they go straight into Google Photos. When I get home, I go through them and delete any that are clearly useless. Next, I might single out any that would work well in black and white, while I will look at others for cropping and straightening. Before joining 1x, I was a member of National Geographic Your Shot, where post-processing was discouraged. Therefore, in 2019, I was relatively new to photo editing. I have never used Photoshop because I believe in the magic of reality. However, I have gradually become more experimental with creative editing, and I use the DxO Film Pack from time to time.
'Rush Hour II'
Where do you look for inspiration, and what inspires you the most?
I look around me wherever I happen to be. Inspiration is all around us. This question reminds me of the pandemic in 2020, when I had cancer and local walks were the only option. I used to look for interesting textures and graffiti, even on litter bins. I actually have a series of photos on 1x that I took in a subway where someone had poured paint onto coloured tiles — an act of vandalism that I saw as abstract art. It has since been cleaned up, so I’m glad I recorded it. Of course, grand architecture and the wonders of nature inspire me, too.
'Concentric Centre'
Many people believe that gear is not very important when you are passionate about photography. However, could you please tell us what equipment you use, such as your camera, lenses, lighting and tripod?
I strongly agree with that opinion. I still take my Fujifilm mirrorless camera on trips abroad, but nowadays I generally rely on my Pixel 7a because cancer surgery under my arm in 2020 left me unable to carry more than minimal equipment. Like Cartier-Bresson, I believe that photography is about using our brain, eyes and heart.
'Museo ABC'
Which photo is your favourite? Please tell us the story behind your choice.
'The Writing on the Bridge'
This is a photo taken below the Millennium Bridge in London, close to Tate Modern which is one of my favourite places to visit. It’s very difficult to choose a single favourite, but I picked this one as I wanted to capture the text overlaid on the people because I used text and language in a visual way during my time at art school so this image links back to those days. I will also mention that this is the only photo I have had published on 1x in less than the usual 36-hour curation period, so it must have struck a chord with one of the head curators!
Which photographers or mentors have influenced you and your photography?
During my time at 1x, many photographers have inspired and supported me, helping me to grow as a photographer. If I regularly comment on your work, then you are one of them. However, I can’t answer this question without mentioning Jorge Pimenta. His support has been unfailing, and his comments on my work are often speechless. His superb work has undoubtedly influenced me, and he goes far beyond what is necessary by accompanying his photos with his wonderful poetry. I would also like to mention Carmine Chiriacò for his creative work, which I find so inspiring, and for his dedication. Outside of 1x, my elder son recently introduced me to Rinko Kawauchi's work. I was fortunate enough to see her exhibition in Bristol, and my son has also recently given me a copy of Alec Soth's Gathered Leaves, which I pore over in my spare time.
'At the edge of the everyday world'
Now that we're almost at the end of this interview, could you please tell us about any photographic projects you'd like to be involved in?
London never ceases to inspire me, and there is always something new to see. For instance, the V&A Storehouse in East London opened at the end of May, and the Serpentine Pavilion for 2025 has just opened in Kensington Gardens. I am planning a trip abroad later in the summer, possibly to Paris, as I would love to see Gehry’s Louis Vuitton Foundation.
'A New V&A VII'
Is there anything else you would like to add, and what are your thoughts on using 1X as a home base for your work?
I decided not to renew my 1X membership in December 2021 because I was struggling to accept how many of my photos were not selected for publication. However, after only a couple of weeks, I missed the site and came back, which shows what it means to me. I have learnt a great deal during my time here. It's a wonderful place to view some of the finest photography, engage with other photographers, and receive feedback. If we believe in ourselves, we must be critical of our work and persevere. I will keep going until I can't anymore! Finally, I would like to express my sincere thanks to Yvette for inviting me to do this interview, which is a great honour.
Thanks you from the bottom of my heart, Elizabeth. It is a honour for the entire 1x community, for the readers and certainly for me, to publish this candid interview.
'Through the Grilles'
'Hadid Interior IV'
'Self Portrait at Tate Modern'
'Peace and Quiet'
'A restored Wing'
![]() | Write |
![]() | Andy Bauer PRO Thank you so much for this insightful interview. It was a real pleasure to read your reflections – full of honesty, warmth, and a deep love for photography. Just like your images, your words are thoughtful and inspiring.
I want to thank you for the generous support you give to others in the photographic community. You’ve so often been one of the first to like my pictures – and not only mine, but those of many others as well. That spirit of encouragement has meant a lot to me and continues to be a real source of motivation.
With warmest regards
Andy |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW My heartfelt thanks for such wonderful words that mean a lot to me, Andy. Warmest regards. |
![]() | Anita Singh PRO Absolutely absorbing interview , interlaced with beautiful and excellent images. Congratulations dear Elizabeth, wish you more power and success. |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Thank you so very much for your wonderful words and kind wishes, dear Anita. |
![]() | X-FlyingKN PRO Dear Elizabeth,
Congratulations on your impressive interview on 1x.com—it was a wonderful read and a true reflection of your passion and talent!
I'm new to the 1x.com community, and I just wanted to say how much I admire your work and your thoughtful comments. Your art is inspiring, and your words bring warmth and insight—thank you for making this space so welcoming !
Also thanks Yvette too !
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![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Dear X-FlyingKN, thank you very much for your wonderful words. You have made a great start on 1x, and I look forward to seeing more of your work! |
![]() | Hans Repelnig PRO It is always a pleasure to see new photos of Elizabeth on 1X. Often it is not easy to describe why but there is something deeper you will feel the longer you explore her photos. You explore pictures of great architecture framing a person and the photo is starting to tell a mysterious story. Thanks for sharing this interesting interview. |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW My heartfelt thanks for your very kind words, Hans. |
![]() | Francesco Martinelli PRO Wow!!!
I just read your interview on the website with great pleasure, and I wanted to sincerely congratulate you. I find your way of observing the world through photography truly inspiring.
I'm especially struck by how you capture the poetry of the woods, whether it's towering trees or a single leaf, while also discovering lines, shapes, and geometry in urban architecture. It's as if you manage to give a voice to what often goes unnoticed.
Once again, congratulations on your work and the sensitivity that shines through your images.
A heartfelt thank you to Yvette for sharing the interview through such a beautiful article. |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Thank you so very much for your kind and meaningful words, dear Francesco. Please don't disappear again as your work is such a delight! |
![]() | garyholman PRO Dear Elizabeth, Such a Wonderful! and interesting interview. I love your selection of amazing images for us to view. A very Big! Congratulations!! from me, and a thank you! to Yvette also. |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Dear Gary, thank you so much for your wonderful words. |
![]() | Patrick Compagnucci PRO Dear Elizabeth, what can I say, but that you, and your work are an inspiration to me. You've helped me so very much in the last few years with your support and helpful participation in the critique forum. I sincerely wish I had your energy level. Many congratulations, and warmest regards, Patrick |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Dear Patrick, my heartfelt thanks for your very kind words. Warmest regards, and keep up your wonderful work! |
![]() | Cicek Kiral CREW Dear Elizabeth, thank you for sharing your work with us. I think each image tells its story poetically in its own way. Merging architectural elements with street photography is not easy and requires perception out of the ordinary. Congratulations dear friend... |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Dear Cicek, thank you so much for your kind words that mean a great deal to me. |
![]() | Vladimir Funtak PRO Each of those images of yours, dear Elisabeth, clarifies my view to the world suggesting me another POV, angle, moment. Yes, I should have done it that way, cross my mind. Tnx for sharing and supporting me on my journey pet... |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW My sincere thanks to you, Vladimir, for such kind words. |
![]() | Jorge Ribeiro Lume PRO I've read very carefully what you've revealed in your interview and I think it coincides with my impression gained over time at 1X. Your testimony is, above all, a testimony of life. Your art comes from a genuine talent that you try to overcome through demanding rationalization. Affective, you are your friend's friend and you have helped many of those who are trying to do something better in photography, always positively reinforcing what is done through thinking and feeling, privileging culture, the interactive story behind the image. For all this, I ask you to see in my words the gratitude I feel. Congratulations!
Translated with DeepL.com (free version) |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW It's hard for me to thank you enough for such wonderful words, Jorge. They mean a great deal to me. |
![]() | Hans-Wolfgang Hawerkamp PRO thanks a lot for this much interesting view into your life and your thoughts about our hobby. Thanks a lot also for all your interest in the work of others and all your time you spent with writing comments. Thanks a lot for the great and much interesting collection of images you have shown here. Many thanks to Yvette for the article |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW My thanks to you, dear Hans-Wolfgang. You are a giant in photography and your work always inspires me. |
![]() | Giorgio Pizzocaro PRO Great Elisabeth! An unmistakable style with a refined research of the composition! I have been a fan of yours for a long time! A special thanks to Yvette Depaepe for the choice! Good work, Giorgio Pizzocaro |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Thank you so very much for your wonderful words, Giorgio! |
![]() | FranzStaab PRO Congratulations, Elizabeth you are always one of the first to comment on my pictures objectively. Thank you very much for this. It was very interesting to learn more about you and to admire your photographic work. Kudos to Yvette as well. |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW My thanks to you, Franz, for your very kind words. |
![]() | Jane Lyons PRO Elizabeth, you are such a wonderful and supportive part of this community. I loved reading your interview and reviewing your photographs. They are special, as are you! |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Jane, my heartfelt thanks for your very kind words that mean a lot to me. |
![]() | Jorge Pimenta PRO Dear Elizabeth! I've just read your inspiring interview at 1x. I was willing for it to happen as your work deserves it. Besides, I wanted to know your references and the steps you took until you became the excellent and influential photographer in our community bery much.
It was a pleasure to revusit and enjoy some of your iconic photographs that I had the pleasure of seeing and following over the years. Your work and the way you relate to others is a reference for me, as I know it is so for many photographers on 1X. Thank you for the reference to my work, which makes me proud; thank you very much! It has been a pleasure to share images and the world with you! Congratulations on the interview, on your work and on the luminous person that you have been for everyone.
I also congratulate Yvette for the initiative and for conducting this excellent and inspiring interview. |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Dear Jorge, now I have tear in my eyes again... I meant to say that your comments sometimes leave me speechless, not that they are speechless! I am the one thanking you, because I have learned so much from you, and your words here add so much to the honour of the interview. I look forward to seeing many more of your inspiring images and reading more of your poetry. |
![]() | konglingming PRO Congratulations, dear friend |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Thank you very much, dear konglingming. |
![]() | Jian Xu PRO Congratulations! I am so glad that your amazing work is featured here, well deserved! Thank Yvette for the interview and sharing this inspiring story! |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Thank you very much for your wonderful words! |
![]() | Herbert A. Franke PRO A great interview and a fantastic series of pictures to go with it.
You are very good at telling stories with pictures and thus also bringing the viewers of the pictures closer to your point of view.
Thank you very much, Elizabeth, for sharing your thoughts with us.
Thank you, Yvette, for bringing Elizabeth closer to us with this interview.
Best regards, Herbert |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW My thanks to you, Herbert, for such kind words. I am a great admirer of your work, always wonderfully documented! |
![]() | Ray Clark PRO Congratulations Elizabeth on an inspiring and extremely interesting interview. Keep on documenting the world! |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Thank you so much for your kind and encouraging words, Ray! |
![]() | Kaisyakuji Yushi PRO Dear Elizabeth.My sincere congratulations and pleasure on your wonderful feature.Congratulations.I always learn a lot from your comments and photos.You are a wonderful senior to me. |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Dear Kaisyakuji, thank you so very much for such kind words. |
![]() | Gabriela Pantu PRO Dear Elizabeth, wonderful interview, all my admiration for your spirit, for being such a special person.I love your story telling, the way you capture the world in your pictures, your kindness.Congratulations and thank you for sharing your thoughts.Thank you, dear Yvette, as always.<3<3 |
![]() | Yvette Depaepe CREW It's a pleasure to me, Gabriela! Elizabeth is such a great lady in every respect. |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Dear Gabriela, my heartfelt thanks for your very kind words; your work is such an inspiration to me! <3 |
![]() | Taufik Ammouneh Martínez PRO Congratulations, Elizabeth! You are usually the first one to like my published photos, which encourages me a lot to keep shooting, as I sincerely admire your work, :) I'm happy that you have been featured here on 1x with this interview, as you truly deserve it! |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Thank you very much for your wonderful words, Taufik! Keep up your excellent work! |
![]() | SachikoHatsumori PRO Congratulations, dear Elizabeth. It’s such a pleasure to see your love for photography and hear about how you’ve been. I look forward to seeing more of your beautiful work. |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Thank you so very much for your kind and thoughtful words, dear Sachiko. |
![]() | Asako Naruto PRO Congratulations, Elizabeth! Really enjoyed reading the interview — looking forward to seeing more of your work! |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Thank you so very much for your kind words, Asako! I am a great admirer of your work. |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Dear Yvette, I am the one thanking you for inviting me and for introducing the article with such wonderful words. I have tears in my eyes because it is truly an honour for me to be published in the magazine! |
![]() | Yvette Depaepe CREW More than deserved, dear Elizabeth ... hugs, Yvette |
![]() | Streiff Marcel PRO Congratulations dear Elizabeth for that wonderful and interesting Interview as well as for the Selection out of your wonderful portfolio ! Many thanks also to Yvette to realize it ! |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Thank you very much for your kind words, dear Marcel, and for your constant support of my work. |
by Head Curator Mikhail Potapov
Edited and published by Yvette Depaepe, the 6th of June 2025
On May 23, 2025, obituaries about the death of the outstanding Brazilian photographer Sebastian Salgado were published on the websites of France 24 and The New York Times. The French Academy of Fine Arts expressed its deep impression of the loss and described the deceased as a great witness to the state of man and the planet. The photographer's family confirmed that the reason for his sudden departure was leukemia, which developed after an incident in 2010, when Salgado contracted a special form of malaria while working on a project in Indonesia.
Photographer Sebastião Salgado is known for his documentary photographs about the life, structure of countries and peoples of the third world. Its main focus is on people suffering from disasters, poverty, and hunger. Born during military conflicts, natural disasters, oppression, and political instability, forced to seek a new home far from their native land.
Capturing on camera the poignant moments of displacement and migration of peoples, during tragic events in their lives, was the driving force behind Sebastian Salgado's intentions. The photographer drew inspiration from his personal experience, because he experienced the exodus of his family in 1969, when they moved to Europe from Brazil, which at that time was under military rule.
The photographer's activity focuses not only on social photography. His works are impressive landscapes, pictures of wildlife, the life of peoples, communities with their own way of life, lifestyle and culture. Everyone brought photos of acute social issues to Sebastian.
Susan Sontag, an American writer, art, theater and film critic, philosopher and essayist, once reproached a Brazilian photographer for poeticizing suffering and poverty. As she believed, he presents the topic very aesthetically, causing admiration among those watching the work, rather than fear, horror and other negative emotions.
Yes, Salgado's pictures are impressive, but the plot is built around the main characters: polar bears, walruses, impoverished communities, firefighters extinguishing burning oil wells.
Sebastian Salgado has always been at the very center of most armed conflicts, managed to film the assassination attempt on Ronald Reagan, worked in the war zone in Western Sahara and Angola. During his long career, he has visited and lived in more than a hundred countries, devoted a lot of time to Latin American countries, delved into the culture, traditions, rituals, and way of life of people who seemed to be stuck in the Middle Ages. The book "Other Americas" includes photographs from 1977-1984, which tell about the difficult life of indigenous peoples in remote parts of the planet.
In 1984-1985, Salgado photographed North Africans who were suffering from hunger and drought, as well as their rescuers, volunteers and members of the Doctors Without Borders community. The pictures are included separately in the book.
Other books by photographer Sebastian Salgado reflect the lives of miners, steelworkers, weavers, and construction workers who lost their jobs due to automation. He also filmed migrants who had to be far from their homeland.
Interesting facts about Sebastian Salgado
During the life, work and creativity of the respected photojournalist, many interesting stories and moments have accumulated. So, for example:
• When Sebastio photographed the locals of northern Brazil, they thought he was a messenger from God who had come to see and capture those worthy of paradise after death. And it's really believable. Most likely, the task of Salgado's work is a great mission.
• The photographer has always been able to find friends and make friends, even in the most amazing and unexplored parts of the world. He could make friends with a turtle in two weeks or with a 35-meter whale in seconds, not to mention people.
After becoming a Doctor of Economics, Sebastian Salgado, at the age of 40, decides to take up photography seriously.
The photographer has two sons, one of whom was born with Down syndrome and has now become an artist.
• Salgado repaid his debts to his native land. After the drought and the disappearance of the forest, he and his wife Leila decided to revive it. They have planted more than 2 million trees. It is now a national nature reserve.
In modern realities, when reporting takes the form of a tool for ideological manipulation, Salgado's experience looks impressive. His main and only message for humanity remains a call not to remain indifferent. It is better to give everything else to feature films, television staff and propagandists.
Some works and projects by Sebastian Salgado
"Other Americas" A book of 49 black-and-white photographs taken between 1977 and 1984 in Brazil, Ecuador, Bolivia, Peru, Guatemala and Mexico. The images show the spiritual and religious practices of the local population, altered rural landscapes and family life.
"Sahel: A Man in Trouble" and "Sahel: The End of the Road". Photo projects created as part of the work with the organization "Doctors without Borders". Salgado documented the suffering of refugees in the Sahel desert region of Africa.
"Workers" The photographer's lens turned out to be people of hard physical labor: steelworkers, miners, gold diggers, builders. The pictures show people who are out of work due to the automation of production.
«Exodus» is a project dedicated to people who escaped genocide. As part of this project, Salgado witnessed real atrocities, especially in Rwanda (Africa).
"Migration: Humanity in Motion" and "Children: Refugees and Migrants". Filming took place in 47 countries and captured refugees and migrants walking, swimming or running in search of a new home.
«Genesis» is a project about the search for harmony between man and nature. This project took eight years of traveling with a camera — from Antarctica to the Arctic, from the Galapagos Islands to the Amazon basin.
"Africa". A book that includes photographs from the lives of the inhabitants of the African continent, taken over the past ten years.
"Kuwait: the desert is on fire". The book about the war in Kuwait reflects the devastating impact of the war on the Middle Eastern country.
Awards and recognition
Sebastian Salgado's works have received worldwide recognition. His awards include the Hasselblad Prize (1989) and the Prince of Asturias Art Prize (1998), the William Eugene Smith Prize (1982), the Paris City Prize (1984), the World Press Photo Prize (Netherlands, 1985), the Villa Medici Prize (France, 1987), the Grand National Prize for Photography (France, 1994) and others.
Salgado presented his life and work in the documentary "Salt of the Earth" (2014), directed by Wim Wenders and his son, Juliano Ribeiro Salgado.
Link to the original article on Mikhail Potapov's website
https://potapov.store/sebastyan-salgado-fotograf-otkryvayuschiy-mir-sol-zemli
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![]() | Gabriela Pantu PRO To live one's life with such awareness of what is essential to humanity, with such generosity and dedication, is an example of greatness and his phenomenal work is the legacy of this greatness.Congratulations for this amazing article. |
![]() | garyholman PRO A splendid article of a very dedicated and talented Photographer. Thank you! for sharing. |
![]() | One of the greatest photographers of our time has died, a great master. A person I greatly admired. May his soul rest in peace. |
![]() | Izabella Végh PRO Grazie per questo bellissimo articolo del grande maestro internazionale della fotografia. Ho visto due sue mostre a Venezia. Uno nel 2014 al Casa dei Tre Oci il "Genesis" , l'altro nel 2015 sempre a Venezia "Sogno del profumo". |
![]() | Beautiful article accompanied by an extraordinary selection of images of a great master of photography with a unique sensitivity. A great loss for those who love photography. Thanks for these memories. |
![]() | I regret to say I was not aware of the work of this photographer and the lives he photographed until your articlle above. My loss. I hope more will come forward to fill his place. We need to see this. |
![]() | Alberto Fasani PRO incredible images.... |
![]() | Bole Kuljic PRO Extra ordinary photographer and evenly great article about a life worth living. Putstanding on both sides. Salgado has left a trail for many to follow.... |
![]() | Gilles Benso PRO Merci beaucoup de partager les photos de Sebastian Salgado.
On y voit toute la beauté d'âme de ce grand homme |
![]() | Linda Lu PRO A great review of a very impactful photographer, thank you! |
![]() | joanaduenas PRO Thanks for sharing work and some parts of Salgado's life!! |
![]() | One of the greats! |
![]() | Hadi Malijani PRO Thank you very much dear friend 🙏💕 |
![]() | Paulo Santos PRO Environmental awareness and the enormous human being in the world would be worth an entire life. Translating this awareness and the path of this poet in the form of light is worth the example.
The admiration for this photographer's impeccable work crosses borders and reaches all the places this great human being has visited. Sebastião Salgado used to say that the photographer carries his entire history and culture with each click, so it is impossible not to recognize the trajectory of this incredible photographer.
Congratulations on the edition and publication. Thank you: Mikhail Potapov and Yvette Depaepe, |
![]() | thanks a lot for this article and the collection of the masters great photos |
![]() | Sebastião Salgado is one of my favorite photographers: His images are raw, direct, sometimes unflinching – and that's precisely what makes them so real and compelling. I would also like to thank Mikail for the article – really well done."
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![]() | Thank you for the review on the life and work of an extraordinary photographer. His images are testimonies that remains. |
![]() | txules PRO A source of constant inspiration: a true master. RIP |
![]() | Wayne Pearson PRO RIP to a photographic genius, who's photographs created awareness and emotive reactions. |
![]() | Pang Teng Lin PRO Fantastic work . An exceptional photographer. Thank you for sharing. Met him a few times in person at his exhibition when he visited Singapore . |
![]() | What an amazing life and photos. Thanks you 1X for sharing his story and works. |
![]() | Thierry Dufour PRO Fantastic images, splendid article, thank you very much !!! |
![]() | Grigore Roibu PRO Fantastic! An exceptional man and photographer! Words have no meaning.... |
![]() | A remarkable article by Mikhail to a great person and one of the best photographers of our time. Thank you!!! Sebastian Salgado‘s life’s work is a milestone to all of us and must always be remembered by us and future generations! |
![]() | Jian Xu PRO Truly incredible and beyond description! I have seen some pictures before. Thank you, Mikhail and Yvette, for sharing this beautiful tribute to the master Sebastian Salgado! |
![]() | Larry Deng PRO Thank you !! |
![]() | Vasil Nanev PRO What a fantastic article, thank you very much! |
![]() | Hans Martin Doelz CREW A fine article with brilliant photos. Thank you ! |
![]() | Absolute Reference. Thanks |
![]() | Anita Singh PRO Words fail me to express my feelings after seeing these images, OMG what an avalanche of emotions come after seeing them. Excellent article |
![]() | Bellissimo articolo che rende omaggio ad un grande fotografo. |
![]() | Julien Oncete PRO Incredible work...!Many thanks to all of you! |
by Yvette Depaepe
Published the 4th of June 2025
'Mystery in Photography'
Mystery is a most intriguing concept.
Mystery invites the viewer to explore the unknown and engage with the image in a deeper way. It’s about leaving space for imagination and often presents a sense of suspense, ambiguity, or curiosity.
Enjoy how the authors of the many submissions expressed it in photography?
The winners with the most votes are:
1st place : Jorge Pimenta
2nd place : DDiArte
3rd place : Rolf Endermann
Congratulations to the winners and honourable mentions and thanks to all the participants in the contest 'Mystery in Photography'
The currently running theme is 'Bridges - engineering wonders'
Bridge photography draws its strength from combining the best parts of architecture and landscape photography to create its own unique genre. These engineering marvels come in a variety of shapes and sizes and offer endless opportunities to create incredible portraits.
This contest will end on Sunday the 15th of June at midnight.
The sooner you upload your submission the more chance you have to gather the most votes.
If you haven't uploaded your photo yet, click here.
Good luck to all the participants.
1st place by Jorge Pimenta
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![]() | garyholman PRO Wonderful! mystery in these images. Congratulations! Jorge and all Photographers. |
![]() | Linda Lu PRO Felt the power of mystery in images, encouraged viewers to use their imagination. Congrats to all winners. |
![]() | Els Keurlinckx PRO Wonderful mystery photo. Congratulations to all winners. :) |
![]() | Pang Teng Lin PRO Congratulations to all winners. Excellent work |
![]() | Thierry Dufour PRO Great images, congrats to all !!! |
![]() | Gila Koller PRO Wonderful Mystery Photos!! Congrats to all. |
![]() | sherry ma PRO Mystery Indeed! Stunning! Congrats!
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![]() | 大山 儀高 PRO 今回も勉強させていただき、大変感謝しています。ありがとうございます。素晴らしい作品ばかりです。 |
![]() | Zhifei Chen PRO Gained a lot of learning |
![]() | Dazhi Cen PRO Congratulations. Learned a lot! |
![]() | Wayne Pearson PRO Congratulations to everyone involved, really stunning work! |
by Yvette Depaepe
Published the 1st of June 2025
Ute Scherhag quotes: "Photography and image editing are not just my hobbies; they are my passion."
This sums up her outstanding architectural photography perfectly. Her preference for clear structures is evident in her work. So it's no coincidence that she finds most of her subjects in architecture. She is always looking at her surroundings, searching for interesting, exciting and aesthetically pleasing subjects to capture. Read on to find out more about this talented lady photographer and her beautiful work.
'Cleveland Clinic, Las Vegas'
Dear Ute, first, I would like to thank you for taking the time to answer this questionnaire. To begin with, could you please introduce yourself briefly and tell us more about yourself, your hobbies and any other projects you are involved in?
I have lived in a small, very old town in the middle of Germany since childhood.
As I don't have much talent for painting but wanted to visualise my ideas, I turned to photography. Like most people, I developed my love for photography with an analogue camera as a teenager.
How and when did you start your journey in photography?
I didn't have the time to pursue this hobby due to work and family commitments. However, that changed when I retired, and I was finally able to turn my ideas and visions into photos.
'V'
For many of us photography is either a hobby or a way of life. How would you define your relationship with photography?
For me, photography is much more than a hobby. I look at my surroundings as if through the viewfinder of my camera. This allows me to discover a wealth of interesting, exciting, and aesthetic subjects worth capturing, even if I don't have a camera with me.
What would be the most important experience so far that has influenced your steps in photography?
Taking part in photography competitions transformed my approach to photography. I started trying to give my images my own personal touch.
'Fraunhofer Institut'
Why are you so captivated by architectural photography?
My preference for clear structures is evident in my photographs. It's no coincidence that most of my subjects are architectural.
'Library'
Which is more important to you: the mood or story behind your images, or technical perfection?
For me, technical perfection is a given. Conveying a mood, or showing the story behind an image in street photography, for example, is also very important.
'Medienhafen'
What is your relationship with your subject matter beyond simply observing it?
Do you carefully prepare the locations where you intend to take photographs?
Once I have taken a photograph, I consider whether I would have painted it in exactly the same way if I were an artist. Usually, there are distracting elements such as litter, dirt, damage to the façades, reflections, and so on. To capture my ideal vision, I remove these in image editing software.
I usually don't have time to prepare the locations I'm photographing, so I adjust lighting conditions afterward.
Describe your overall photographic vision.
The ideal photo I had in mind therefore doesn't exactly correspond to what I found. However, interfering with the architecture is never an option when editing images. In my photos, I simply try to capture my vision as closely as possible.
'FOM'
Could you tell us more about your workflow, from initial idea to final product?
Most of my architectural photographs are taken by visiting the buildings without considering the lighting conditions during the planning stage. First, I let the subject take effect, and then I start taking a series of photos. The most important work comes afterwards, during the editing process in Lightroom and Photoshop.
Where do you look for inspiration, and what inspires you most?
I find looking at good photographs every day inspiring.
'triangles'
'Taxi!'
Many people believe that gear is not very important when you are passionate about photography. However, could you please tell us what equipment you use (camera, lenses, lighting, tripod, etc.)?
A good image isn't solely created in the camera; the photographic equipment, whether a camera or a phone, must be capable of producing a technically flawless image. Lightroom and Photoshop are indispensable to me because they help me to realise my vision.
'subway'
Which photo is your favourite? Please tell us the story behind it.
My favourite photo, 53W53, was taken by chance in New York. I was in a hurry to get to Fifth Avenue when I suddenly found myself standing in front of the transparent building next to the Museum of Modern Art. I took this photo on the run.
'53W53'
Which photographers or mentors have influenced you and your photography?
I have many favourite photographers whose pictures I enjoy looking at on 1x.com. However, I also admire earlier photographers such as Vivian Maier and Saul Leiter.
'Leica'
Now that we're almost at the end of this interview, could you please tell us about any photographic projects you'd like to be involved in?
A few years ago, I made a list of places that I absolutely had to photograph. Unfortunately, this list doesn't get any smaller because new places are constantly being added! So I still have a lot to do!
'photographer'
Is there anything else you would like to add, and what are your thoughts on using 1x.com as a home base for your work?
I showcase my images on 1x.com because the curation process enables me to ascertain whether they meet the stringent criteria. The feedback I receive in the form of publication or awards helps me to improve the quality of my images.
'rusty'
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![]() | sherry ma PRO Mesmerizing and beautiful! Congrats! |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Sherry |
![]() | Tomo PRO Great work. |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Tomo |
![]() | Always a pleasure to see new work of you Ute .... Congratulations with this well deserved overview. Thank you for the fine article Yvette! |
![]() | Yvette Depaepe CREW My pleasure, Luc ... I love her work too! |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Lucy |
![]() | Miro Susta CREW Liebe Ute, seit längerer Zeit bewundere ich deine wunderschöne Aufnahmen, herrliche Fotoarbeit, ich gratuliere dir. Dear Yvette many thanks for publishing this interesting interview and such a beautiful photographs. |
![]() | Yvette Depaepe CREW Thank you dear Miro! Ute is a fine artist ;-) |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Miro |
![]() | When passion works ..... Mindblowing.. UTE. |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Partha |
![]() | joanaduenas PRO Beautiful collection, thanks for sharing your work!! |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, joanaduenas |
![]() | Asombrosas imagenes felicidades Ute. Mi reconocimiento y enhorabuena |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Jois |
![]() | Rana Jabeen PRO Impressive works..many congratulations Ute |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Rana |
![]() | Pang Teng Lin PRO Spectacular perspective |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Pang Teng Lin |
![]() | Gila Koller PRO Great architecture photos Uta!! Thank you Yvette for this fascinating interview. |
![]() | Yvette Depaepe CREW Thanks for your appreciation, Gila. Ute is a fine artist ... |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Gila |
![]() | Wael Onsy PRO Stunning collection , thanks a lot Ute for your great art |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Wael |
![]() | Eiji Yamamoto PRO Thank you so much for a very interesting and wonderful interview with great photos! Very inspiring! |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Eiji |
![]() | Wayne Pearson PRO Beautifully presented and dynamic images, thank you very much Ute, and as always, thank you very much too Yvette. |
![]() | Yvette Depaepe CREW No thanks, Wayne. More than deserved for Ute! |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Wayne |
![]() | Ute, love your images. I'm a big fan. Warmest Regards, Patrick |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Patrick |
![]() | Greetje van Son PRO I love your style in architecture Ute! The finishing touch is fabulous of your hand. Your photopraphic eye and your skills are of a high standard. Congrats with this fascinating interview and thanks to Yvette for publishing |
![]() | Yvette Depaepe CREW Always a treat to me too to present our talented lady Ute ;-) |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, dear Greetje |
![]() | Jian Xu PRO Fabulous work and very inspiring images! Congratulations !!! Thank Yvette for putting another wonderful story and sharing with us! |
![]() | Yvette Depaepe CREW Thank you for your appreciation, Jian. A well deserved feature !!! |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Jian |
![]() | garyholman PRO Wonderful! images and an interesting interview. Congratulations! Ute. |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Gary |
![]() | Larry Deng PRO Great collections. Congrats Ute +++ |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Larry |
![]() | Arnon Orbach CREW Dear Ute, what a wqonderfully presented architecture gallery, so well composed and edited with highly impressive results. My warmest compliments to you and to Yevette for sharing it all with us. |
![]() | Yvette Depaepe CREW I'm very pleased to put Ute in the spotlight here in the magazine, Arnon ;-) |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Arnon |
![]() | DonnaHom PRO Very nice collection of architectures |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, DonnaHom |
![]() | Yaping Zhang PRO 我很欣赏您的杰出作品,图文并茂。 |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Yaping Zhang |
![]() | Susanne Jung PRO Wie mich das freut, von dir und deinen Arbeiten zu lesen, liebe Ute! Deine Fotos sind für mich immer "Augenschmaus". Großartig dein Blick, die Dinge zu sehen und großartig deine Umsetzung am PC! Ganz liebe Grüße Susanne |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Herzlichen Dank, liebe Susanne, Du weißt, dass auch ich mich immer wieder an Deinen tollen, Geschichten erzählenden Bildern erfreue, Liebe Grüße Ute |
![]() | Ursula Reinke PRO Liebe Ute, du bist schon viele Jahre ein Vorbild für meine fotografische Arbeit, ich bewundere deine Kreativität, dein Können in der Bildbearbeitung und dein Portfolio! Liebe Grüße Ulla |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Liebe Ulla, über Deinen Kommentar freue ich mich ganz besonders. Herzliche Grüße Ute |
![]() | Les Forrester PRO Superbly inspiring images and an excellent insight into the photographer, thank you |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, Les |
![]() | Liebe Ute,
herzlichen Glückwunsch zu dieser fantastischen Vorstellung Deiner qualitativ herausragenden Fotos. Wie Du weißt, bewundere ich Deine Bilder, Deine Art fzu fotografieren und vor allem Deine tollen Ideen bei der Bildbearbeitung, schon so lange wie wir uns kennen.
Ich hoffe und freue mich darauf, weitere wunderbare Bilder von Dir zu sehen.
LG Herbert
Thank you so much, Yvette, for your presentingt these wonderful pictures of Ute and the ideas behind them in this Iinterview.
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![]() | Yvette Depaepe CREW My pleasure, Herbert. Ute's work is so outstanding. |
![]() | That is as clear as the “Amen” in church. |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Lieber Herbert, es freut mich so sehr, Deinen anerkennenden Kommentar zu lesen. Lass mal wieder von Dir hören!!! Herzliche Grüße Ute |
![]() | Oscar Lopez PRO I have admired Ute’s photography for a long time already. A well deserved recognition with this interview. |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Thank you so much, dear Oscar |
![]() | Feines Portfolio, gefällt mir gut |
![]() | Ute Scherhag PRO Herzlichen Dank, lieber Martin |
Photography by Davide Barzaghi
Texts by Giancarlo Tonani
Published the 30st of May 2025
About Davide Barzaghi
Born in Asti in 1976 and raised in a small town in Monferrato, I moved to Rome to attend the faculty of psychology at La Sapienza University. I became a father at a very young age and on that occasion I started my business as an entrepreneur from scratch. Always passionate about art and design I discovered photography in 2020, self-taught and in parallel with the development of a rare neurological disease that impaired my ability to walk and speak fluidly. Since that day, capturing images has become my way of communicating, expressing my ideas and conveying my emotions. I shoot exclusively with my iPhone camera, without using additional lenses or photo retouching or post-production softwares. Over the years I have been shooting nonstop, constantly searching for my precise identity and a technique that would allow me to express the complexity of the gaze. I portray the everyday, look for the dazzle of an eternal instant, dive into my depths to search for the light of the soul. Glances, naked bodies, essential sets, uncanny compositions, the presence-absence of life declined in its daily flow, ghosts suspended between the real and the imaginary, between memories and hopes.
More than 400 published images, more than 150 award-winning, 3 realized projects exhibited in museums, galleries, venues in Italy,France, Germany, Spain, South Africa, United States, Brazil, Switzerland, England, Japan, UAE, Principality of Monaco. Olympus has fallen, circus the abandoned future and now Afterlife: three projects that tell my life, my language, my world. I have had the good fortune to meet on this journey collectors and critics who have found my works introspective, interesting, worthy of being proposed to a wide audience, and enhanced through exhibitions and displays. Currently my project Aldilà is on display in Milan, Barolo and Asti, in the coming months it will be on view in Monte Carlo, Alassio, Berlin, Dubai, Palma, Zug and Turin.
I thank every single collector, every critic, every publisher, every visitor, every sponsor, I thank all those who have made this journey possible and have been passionate in front of my emotions.
'A.D. 2023'
'Potremmo essere Felici'
'Pagine'
GAPS
'Il Buio Dentro'
'Il Vizio'
'La Fine dell'Estate'
SUR-REALITY
'Res/Rei'
'Nuda'
'Mi Vendo'
'Il Vuoto'
EDEN HORIZON
'Imprevisti'
'La Bambola'
'La Lettera'
LOVE AND WALL
'Respiro'
'Incompresioni'
'Aldilà'
See more here [370] Davide Barzaghi
About AlDiLà - The àgalma of the everyday
Agalma is a word that harks back to the original meaning of a precious little gift: a little thing, in its customary use value, is invested with the sense of an elegant and rare choice, and is thus charged with those valences, affective and even intrusive, that gifts have. It is linked, by analogy, to the reflowering myth of the sculptor Pygmalion who falls in love with his statue to the point of wanting to make a living being out of it. Hence, also through the high road of Plato's Symposium, the metaphorical meaning of treasure hidden in an object, in a game, in a story, in an image, in a person. With the direct gaze in this sense, one can grasp the agalmatic value of everything. A shining, a light of special vividness can pop up in the everyday. It is readable in this direction "AlDiLà." And it moves toward a twofold adventure, visual and symbolic.
First of all, toward the search for a photographic style, starting from the way of framing the scene, to the strategies of cutting, of choosing the detail, to the recurring games of shadows, of contrasts, of details that return as small, sometimes hidden signatures of the author. Also at work in this research is unconscious perception, a “tropism” (to use the word used by a great photographer, Ralph Gibson) that, as if by pulsional attraction, orients the photographer toward a shot that becomes “his own,” a sign-spy of his inner world, of his own very particular way, largely unknown to himself, to interpret reality.
That is why the expressive figure of “AlDiLà” should be sought even among photos that belong to distant themes; precisely the recursiveness of particular uses of the medium, sometimes obvious, other times very subtle, ends up bringing them into dialogue.
There is, then, a symbolic structure that presents itself right from the title of the exhibition. The set of photos gradually dissolves the open evocativeness of that “overcoming,” that “beyond.” So many doors appear in the pictures, revealing details of the force with which the theme of the gateway, the threshold, the open-closed, dark-light contrast plays, suggesting as the emotional center of this work the confrontation with critical moments of life, with the psychological incandescence of daily living. There is an adage, Pirandellian and Montalian, that “life is either written or lived”: variously declined by exponents of the full range of art forms, from painting to music to photography, it can be interpreted in two opposite directions. Art is so demanding that it becomes the bottomless pit of vital energies.
Or, rather, art is vitality, it is life capable of enhancing life, giving it meaning, allowing personal experiences to access the boundless system of the symbolic, where pain, love and the infinite range of emotions resonate, acquire perspective depth, can find a space for elaboration and sharing.
Interpreting an idea of photography using essential shots with an Iphone to probe a liberating gateway, one that inputs to “horizontal” values, with ample recourse to lightness and irony: thus, this complementary intention of AlDiLà produces an overall effect of surrealist minimalism, in the continuous oscillation between the essentiality of the scenarios, simple and everyday, and the “in focus” scenes, the point-strength of the image, often demystifying and ambiguous, so much so that it often gives the sensation of being in front of projective solicitations: a Thematic Apperception Test in photographic version.
There play in counterpoint the “veil” of hedonistic pleasantness, even with the use of glossy glamour, and the “tears,” something that screeches and bumps forcing a confrontation with limit, lack, pain, inescapable emotions of human experience. On the one hand, then, the brightness that in the marked contrasts of black and white caresses the nakedness of bodies. There we find a strong “tropism”: the central, and richest part of “AlDiLà” focuses on the 'Eden of the sensuality of the female body.
But equally strong, and capable of creeping even among the luminous veils, the “tear.” Of course in this the medium, the fatally alienating, tanatographic dimension of photographic ice that freezes time and life, cannot fail to play. But it also works, in the specifics of these images, the confrontation between narcissistic wall and a “Yes” to the flow of life in the inextricable nexus of good and bad, of beautiful and ugly. This dialectic, if one is looking for something worth seeing, is inescapable. One evening, I took Beauty on my lap. And I found it bitter -- wrote Rimbaud in his “Season in Hell.” If one does not find bitterness, in any form of artistic expression, one has found nothing. Only “pretty pictures” or, even more terribly, “pretty pictures.” Almost always, the hegemonic cultural system wants one to look for nothing, wrapped up in the endless chatter of the prêt-à-porter sentences that are sweetly blind. Sometimes, however, bitterness presents itself to us with such insistence that it compels us to see, rains down on us like rain of shots Beyond the Beautiful. Thus, the thing that appears, the Chose freudienne, is tear in the fabric of the reassuring idea of Civilization. Many images go there, toward the perspective point where no one communicates anything to anyone, each alone with their own, often acrobatic, narcissistic isolation. Hugs house emotions that do not look. Glimpses of eyes as beautiful and expressionless as those of angels: Être Ange C'est Étrange , wrote Prevert. Beauty Beyond, consigned to the walls to relaxation to the claustrum.
But Beyond this cold light, fall the veils of that wretched thing that is the pacified and spherical Ego, and of polite and cold two-way relationships. In this direction works the nudity subjected to the “work of the formless,” as the Surrealists called the rupture of well-thought-of representations, and then the gaze catches the body that the mirror or water or a piece of object deforms or completes or blurs, and so many totems enter the dance of the shots: artistic or salvaged artifacts mask-reveal the bodies, make jokes of them, or archetypes, in the small infinite distance between the two effects. And pain appears, dark and closed gaps. And cracks and imperfections show themselves frequently, sometimes as co-protagonists of the scene. Each time the veil is lifted, the pictures seem to tell us, perhaps with the smile of images and antiphrastic titles, that our only possible truth lies in the triumph of the masks we assume, pure semblances without essence, that metaphysical “essence” that is the stuff of fossil philosophers or herbalists.
Essential, if anything, is knowing how close we are to the mollusks and crustaceans that appear in many shots. How much the food offered in refined and aestheticizing arrangements is death feeding life, seductive horror. With little regard for time coming out of the asphyxiated reckoning of history, we know ourselves children of the inorganic, brothers of fish and shellfish, within the cycle, we know not how brief, of life-death. Beyond the Hereafter lies the capacity to gratefully hold up caducous living, and all that allows us to be so.
Here on earth, in our iridescent layers, in the constant oxymoron of joyful weeping, of shared loneliness, lies our Beyond, made of desire in search of its golden objects that give meaning to life. The photos then show, as in a game of metamorphosis of the gaze, their symbolic reverse: having accepted the inescapable otherness of all that surrounds us, the embraces accommodate emotions that do not know ... and love.
Gaps
Even the gaze framed by the dense foliage of trees, or peeking through the web of an octopus's tentacles, can evoke the experience of the Gap, an experience traditionally represented with images of closed doors, walls, something that makes a feared-desired access arduous. Looking closely in the photos in this introductory section, the evocation of the Threshold alternates with that of the Gap. On the Threshold, one waits, fears or hopes, but one does not really seek a gap, except as a dreamed thing. To evoke the Gap is to bring into play the determination to go beyond, to challenge a limit, to force our limits. One can use the aesthetic categories that Ezra Pound elaborated to mark the difference between Lyric and Poetry. The Threshold is Lyric, contemplative and intimate. The Gap is Poetry, which the Greek etymon “poiein” leads back to doing, acting.
Lyric of the Threshold in Waiting for Summer, and in The End of Summer, where a woman moves and lingers before a closed door and a bright wall: thresholds that separate in a before and after natural events that arrive without our contest but that trigger in us a sense of time, regret and hope, what is remembered, what is feared: a Saturday and a Sunday, to recall the threshold effect of Leopard's Saturday.
The photo Fear of Darkness is Poetry of the Gap: romantic poetry of the Gap, with the dramatic light-shadow contrast and with the arms of the human figure outstretched in the effort to cross over to step out into the light, as if in re-enactment of the “Streben,” push and yearn. Photographing is articulation of the two moments. The photographic lens is certainly a threshold, for the eye of the shooter, spying like a curious person through a keyhole, imagines something that leads beyond the frame in which reality is experienced. But the shot is the moment of the Gap, because it enters into a perturbing experience: into a watching oneself being watched. If, in fact, as is a well-established belief, the photographer is a voyeur, he is certainly a voyeur who in turn offers himself to the voyeurism of those who see a kind of mysterious theater of his inner world appear, not in the sense that who knows what occult contents surface (although there is a lush anecdote on the subject) but in the sense that while looking for a subject, an effect, a meaning, or chasing a form, a geometry, the effect of light ... appears the “ghost,” our window of contact with reality, the constant idiolectic blowing within our life choices. What has always been called personal style, not only in art but also in what distinguishes behavior, comes from the breath of the ghost: it surfaces in the ciphered emergence of a minimal detail that is repeated, in the 'insistent use of an effect, in a theme that becomes recurring, in a motif that becomes haunting, in all sorts of expressive tics ... and makes its way, in and out of the innermost zones of our psyche.
Love and the Wall
Walls are everywhere, we live among walls and build them all the time. The wall is the soundtrack of daily looking around us. There is Wall, in relationships between men, especially in relationships between men and women, and in love relationships in general: labyrinthine libraries on incommunicability, and film libraries, and ... the continuous experience of living: acts, words, are returned to us always far from the fullness of understanding (understanding of what, then? as soon as we speak we are taken away from ourselves, we compare(s)ers elsewhere): in every relationship it is therefore not possible to get out of the structures of misunderstanding and alienation. Thick, glass-filled local and historical walls that shout and offend; walls with which we separate ourselves and from which we shoot.
But there is, among our traits of normal insanity, the unlimited will, and the even more boundless poly-media-minded lies, to want us without walls, strong especially when the word "love" is uttered. The thing, (s)seen this way, then becomes that walls are obstacles that the enthusiasm of encounter and the joyful effort of good will can break down and from two we become one, with only one fate, good or bad.
It is quite comical to think that one of the many sources of this myth is pointed to a philosophical origin, namely Plato's Symposium, in the little story of the original hermaphrodite who, split in two by divine punishment, seeks his half with which to be reunited in order to become one again, spherical and perfect. Too bad Plato wanted to entertain with a "comic" thesis, proposed by a comic character-actor on a late wine-soaked evening. So many still believe it, even without wine, but with naiveté equal to the wounds that come when the wall appears instead of the one heart in the hut (if anything, two walls make one alienating hut), and who call love the dustbin of all demands for absolutes born of narcissistic hunger with narcissistic rage following.
What one can do to experience love is to know how to deal with these walls, to know them, to know where they are, and to wait for the happiness of loving to come by taking us from behind, unexpected miracle. You cannot be asked to tear down walls. If anything, within four walls, it is possible to lose oneself in the pleasure of loving, with eyes closed, as long as one can, as long as it lasts.
SurReal
The Real is never grasped with the tongs of Reality, a human construction in perpetual becoming, subject to adjustment, controversy and fierce struggle. When something happens that evades our capacity for interpretation, for symbolic acceptance, we are faced with the Real. One artistic way of expressing this displacement of meaning is the long-standing Surrealism, that of Michelangelo's self-representation in the floppy skin of St. Bartholomew, Bosch's in his Garden of Delights, or Blake's in The Man Who Taught Blake Painting in his Dreams. Then comes historical surrealism and it begins to unleash, in pictorial and literary representations, incongruent elements, challenges of all sorts to the senses and the mind. Now, nearly 100 years after Magritte's "betrayal of images," there is an endemic surrealism running through our culture, very often tragically unaware. But there also remains the pleasure of the surreal gimmick that asks to be free in the proliferation of self-eliding meanings.
In a way, in the specifics of a language fundamentally based on irony, also in this section of "AlDiLà" the plot of a photographic poetics that focuses on "undressing," on a subtle but enveloping praise of bare life, continues. Where the image plays with the freedom of dreams (dreams are not always free), the only meaning is not wanting meaning, welcoming nonsensical wisdom.
And make something of this even beyond the realm of surreal expressions: even the data of reality , even those most filled with truth, carry as a shadow an unthinkable and uninterpretable residue: a little nudity is fine even when we have to dress up.
The Gaze of Narcissus
No medium like photography can render the swift and continuous metamorphosis of human appearance, the processes of transition from pride to despair of our psyche, glass with a thousand veins ready to break upon impact according to lines of flaking. While psychiatrists give precise names to these flaking lines, and search with various psychotherapies for glues to hold the pieces together, photographers exhibit the irreversible waning of the times when the image was supposed to reflect identity values, to define man, to sculpt "in the round" his temperament and his place in the world. In the analysis room the wounds speak, on the pictures one can see the image. Certainly not with the physiognomic pretensions of Lavater's time: rather, what one sees, if anything, is the virtuous-violent movement of those cracks, the wounds that become loopholes to grasp possibilities for development, the nexus linking psychosis and gods that suggests the analytic tradition between Jung and Hillman.
There is a mythology that permeates the photographic work, that of narcissism, which traverses time and space in the celebration of obsessive self-love and the fixing of the virtues of one's identity traits. The myth of Narcissus is the cult version of this.
Contemporary photography cannot but make this a central, almost inescapable theme, between the polarity of the celebration of one's own image and identity, à la Mapplethorpe, to the suffering experience of Nan Goldin who self-reflects in moments of "beauty and pain," to use her own terms, ruthlessly reflecting herself in her own punk, abused, drag queen image. With Cindy Sherman, then, it goes so far as to photographed the caricature massacre of the "rococo" narcissism of contemporary female imagerie: in reversal of the stereotypes of the feminine who wants to escape time and imperfection, she self-portrays herself as a clown, disguised in a thousand bizarre fashions, a silicon mask: Narcissus mirrors himself appalled in the fluff of conventional self-representations.
In AlDiLà, the relationship with mythologema is very complex and personal. Ideally, it is the path from Rebirth and Regret, images that can be interpreted as moments of coming out of the cocoon of the static image, the Olympian silhouette of the Ideal Ego, the iron mask .... to touch the earth with one's hands, among the uncertain reflections of the symbols in which we are immersed and by which we are spoken. The shots oscillate, in calculated disorder, between different valences of the Narcissus gaze, not so much to be seen as developments but as discontinuous emergencies of a hand-to-hand with the Narcissus gaze. Certainly such a gaze often functions as a positive conduit for contact with pleasure: it is "horizontally" removed from demonizations that want life as sacrifice, deprivation, asceticism toward some ascent of redemption. Indeed, quite simply, many shots convey a homage to the light hedonism that is mirrored: these are the smug shots of light moments in life, and some images seem to have escaped from the "horizontal Eden" section to bring it here, Eden, to be mirrored in the mirror or in the water of a swimming pool. More subtle, and linked to profound possibilities of self-reflection, there also appears a real self-portrait narcissism squared: the mirror ripples to irony over the reassuring idea of identity, the complacency of the self-portrait oscillates between overt and covert dimensions, the face is eclipsed, and in the body appears the Sisyphus effort, the twisting in space, the enveloping in a dynamic that reveals the cathartic confrontation with the chilling aspects of myth. Narcissus, laughing or crying, living or dead, true wanted.
Texts by Giancarlo Tonani
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![]() | Davide Barzaghi CREW Thanks to all for appreciating my work and feeling my insight |
![]() | Gila Koller PRO David I am sure you are an inspiration to many photographers, your work is outstanding!! thank for this impressive story. wishing you all the best. |
![]() | Davide Barzaghi CREW Honored dear
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![]() | Vladimir Funtak PRO Very nice. |
![]() | Davide Barzaghi CREW Thanks |
![]() | Arnon Orbach CREW Davide, your story is breathtaking and illustrates that producing genuine art depends on the artist’s vision and not the tools used. Thanks so much for sharing your impressive story with the powerful gallery shown. My warmest congratulations Davide. |
![]() | Davide Barzaghi CREW So honored Arnon |
![]() | Congratulations, Davide!! |
![]() | Davide Barzaghi CREW Thanks dear friend |
![]() | Excellent images Davide, Interesting and thought provoking. Congrats! |
![]() | jordiegeatorrent PRO A personal, subjective speech crafted through emotion. Thank you for sharing. |
![]() | Ilan Amihai PRO wow how i love your work so original so good composed and think ... thanks again for share it. |
![]() | Davide Barzaghi CREW My pleasure |
![]() | Elizabeth Allen CREW Congratulations on this feature, Davide, so well deserved for your inspiring work. I look forward to seeing your future work, and you have my sincere best wishes. |
![]() | Davide Barzaghi CREW Dear Elizabeth… as you know you have always been my precious support…thanks for all your time and attention |
![]() | Excellent |
![]() | Davide Barzaghi CREW Thanks dear |