Gianni Berengo Gardin

Poetics of reality

XII INTERNATIONAL MONTH OF PHOTOGRAPHY IN MOSCOW ‘PHOTOBIENNALE 2018’

Gianni Berengo Gardin. Poetics of reality

Project presented by the Forma Foundation for Photography

Curator: Alessandra Mauro

As part of Photobiennale 2018, the Multimedia Art Museum, Moscow, presents the exhibition Poetics of reality by Gianni Berengo Gardin, one of the best-known living Italian photographers. The exhibition is presented by the Forma Foundation for Photography, Milan, and curated by Alessandra Maura.

‘True Photography’ (‘Vera Fotografia’) is a stamp that Gianni Berengo Gardin puts on the verso of all his photographs. This phrase expresses the photographer’s credo: capture reality as it is without changing a single detail.

Being a photographer means acting as an observer with an attentive and curious attitude towards reality.

Like a seismographer that records earthquakes, Berengo Gardin captures events taking place in his native Italy and the entire world with a sense of humour and a great affinity for his characters, highlighting things that require attention and call for change.

Born in Santa Margherita Ligure, Italy, in 1930, Gianni Berengo Gardin began to take photographs in the early 1950s. After moving to Milan, he focused on documentary photography. In 1979, he began to work with the outstanding architect Renzo Piano, documenting the different stages of implementation of his projects. Berengo Gardin has published over 250 photo books. His most recent publications include The Book of Books (2014), Madhouses (2015), and Venice and Large Cruise Ships (2015). In 1995, he received the Leica Oskar Barnack award. Berengo Gardin has worked with major Italian and international periodicals for many years. He has had over 200 solo shows in the course of a career that spans over 60 years.

‘When I take photographs’, Berengo Gardin says, ‘I like moving, moving about. I don't say I like dancing the way Cartier-Bresson used to, but at the same time I try to be as invisible as possible. When I have to tell a story, I always aim to start from the outside, to show where a village is and what it looks like, to go into its streets, then its shops and its houses to photograph objects. That's the thread; it's a logical, normal method that's useful for discovering not just a village but also a city or a country. It's good for discovering and for getting to know mankind’.

Gianni Berengo Gardin’s uncompromising stance, devotion to his work, and enormous talent have brought him international acclaim, making him one of the greatest living Italian photojournalists.