Matteo Di Giovanni
I had to shed my skin
Artphilein Editions, Lugano — 2022
What’s your homeland when you have no roots?
You were just born in a place you call home, but you have nothing to do with it. It just doesn’t feel yours.
You can only be looking for traces.
You take bits and pieces from the places you’ve lived in – as well as from your memories – and try to make them work together.
"Photographing the place I come from has not been easy at all. I thought it would, but it wasn't. Many unexpected things came up. Memories on top of everything, good and bad. Exploring that piece of land has also been a way to know a bit of myself that i had never taken into consideration. What came out is the result of nine years of shooting.
From the first experiments to the last years, when I intensified my presence in the area, looking for a twist, which would have given that universality I was looking for.
Photography weighs. It has a physicality that we often forget".
Matteo Di Giovanni
Photos by Matteo Di Giovanni.
Text by Aaron Schuman.
