World history: “Photography and Neorealism in Italy, 1945-1965” project in Moscow

On January 17th 2012 the Lumière Brothers Center of Photography in Moscow is staging a new project called “Photography and Neorealism in Italy, 1945-1965”. This is a unique chance to discover the world of Italian neorealism, a unique cultural phenomenon which appeared in the 1940s.

Creative principles of Italian neorealism were formulated by playwright and film critic Cesare Zavattini. During that hard time Italy was going through he attracted attention to real lives of ordinary people, such problems as unemployment, gap between poverty and wealth. Its key feature was “documentary evidence”, ordinariness, rejection of decorations and studio photography. Neorealism writers were chronicles who described the tragedy of their compatriots, who have gone through fascism and defeat in the war.

The neorealism trend was then supported by photographers. In 1946 Luigi Crocenzi published his earliest photo-stories “Eternal Italy” (Italia senza tempo) and “View of Milano” (Occhio su Milano). In 1951 Crocenzi published a photo-story “The Lanes of My Quarter” (Nei vicoli del mio quartiere) created in collaboration with poet Nanni Selva.

The Friulian Group for New Photography (Il Gruppo Friulano per una Nuova Fotografia, GFNF) was founded on December 1st 1955. Its members were prominent Italian photographers of 2nd half of 20th century. They were eager to reflect modern history through photography which in a poetic way documents the world.

Photo-stories by Luigi Crocenzi, works of The Friulian Group for New Photography (GFNF), shots by Mario Giacomelli, which present a complete story, created by the photographer’s fantasy – are main exhibits of “Photography and Neorealism in Italy”. It took almost a year to finish the exhibition. So far many of these authors have never been displayed in Russia. The project has travelled to France, Italy, and the United States. This time the exhibition debuts in Moscow. The exposition has been prepared by the Center of Research and Archiviation of Photography (CRAF) of Italy, the Italian Institute of Culture in Moscow jointly with the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, and features 127 works.