A RIVA: the book 02 of the Sirmione Photo Residency

“And it was precisely along the shores that I walked, those border places where the town fades into a little-used path, into a pink cliff, into a bay where grebes dive quickly and herons make their white appearances. […] Along these paths I accompanied the people who lent themselves to new explorations or who shared with me the places that were most significant to them. […] An ecosystem that exists, that precedes us and, if we manage to see it with new eyes, will be our legacy.”
Simona Ghizzoni, from the introduction to “A RIVA”.

On Friday 25 October, A RIVA, the BOOK02 of the Sirmione Photo Residency, was presented at Palazzo Callas Exhibitions, an exciting exploration of the territory and the living world of Sirmione, a book that opens a space of reconciliation between nature and people.

The book that concretizes the experience lived in the Sirmione photographic residence in an editorial product with high documentary value, is published by the Municipality of Sirmione, and was presented by the photographer Simona Ghizzoni, by the Mayor of Sirmione, Luisa Lavelli and by the Councilor for Tourism, Riccardo Genovesi.

Through photographic exploration, the work highlights historical, anthropological and social aspects that emerge in the heart of the collective conscience, thus becoming a cultural and social document destined to remain and enrich the heritage of shared memory of our community.

With the work of the Roman photographer, the Sirmione Photo Residency continues the exploration of the countless aspects of the city of Sirmione and confirms itself as a platform capable of generating tangible and significant content. A RIVA is part of a broader and ongoing editorial project, through which the Municipality of Sirmione promotes the exploration and enhancement of the territory contributing to the cultural and social enrichment of the city.

• The interventions

The evening was an opportunity to delve deeper into the project, the book and its stages of realization. Simona Ghizzoni discussed it extensively with Ludovica Pellegatta, Partnerships Director of Magnum Photos who, together with Andrèa Holzherr, Global Cultural Director of the agency, followed the realization of the project, and with Roberta Valtorta, historian and photography critic, who contributed a critical apparatus to the publication: “Simona Ghizzoni’s female figures move in a landscape that appears suspended in time, evoking a Sirmione that seeks a deeper connection with nature. These presences merge with the environment, as if they were searching for something essential and forgotten. An invitation to explore nature in a different way, seeking a more authentic contact, which goes beyond the simple visual perception of the place.”

The Mayor of Sirmione, Luisa Lavelli, underlined the constant attention of the Municipality to support projects such as the Sirmione Photo Residency: “A RIVA is the symbol of Sirmione’s commitment to supporting art and culture, but also to promoting a greater awareness of our relationship with nature. Each image reminds us of the importance of preserving our natural heritage, celebrating its beauty”.

The book demonstrates how it is possible to promote the territory through an authentically cultural expression, in which art frees itself from the constraints of strictly advertising promotion, offering a deeper and freer narrative. Thus Riccardo Genovesi, Councilor for Tourism, underlines the value of the SIRMIONE PHOTO RESIDENCY BOOK02: “Through the artistic gaze, each image becomes an invitation to discover our territory, immersing oneself in a reality that combines nature, culture and history, an example of how Sirmione knows how to offer quality tourism. The images of A RIVA become ambassadors of an authentic and profound experience of our city”.

Simona Ghizzoni has returned to the same tracks she left a year ago at the start of the project: “I wanted to explore the deep connection between history, legend and nature that coexist inextricably in the stories of this extraordinary place, where Sirmione, a tiny peninsula suspended between water and land, invites us to slow down and observe. This project was born from my desire to immerse myself in the confines of these landscapes, trying to restore delicacy and strength”.

• Contents

The work explores the deep connection between the human being and the environment of Sirmione, re-actualizing the historical and mythical roots of the city. Simona Ghizzoni recovers legends and traditions linked to water, starting from the etymology of Sirmione, the “refuge on the water”, intertwining mythical roots with the contemporary story of the connection between the nature of the territory and its inhabitants, a fundamental aspect of the artistic investigation, which develops through portraits, still lifes, landscapes and a herbarium of traditional plants. This structure offers a layered vision of the territory, in which every element is carefully chosen to tell stories of life and bonds that characterize the community.

• The residency

The Sirmione Photo Residency is a photographic initiative of the Municipality of Sirmione that allows a photographer selected by Andréa Holzherr and Ludovica Pellegatta, respectively Global Cultural Director and Partnerships Director of Magnum Photos, to spend a period of two weeks in Sirmione creating in complete freedom his own photographic project related to the city.

At the end of the project the best photographs are selected and become a volume. The artistic direction of the project and the volume is always entrusted to Andrea Holzherr and Ludovica Pellegatta.

The Sirmione Photo Residency is part of a wide-ranging project that sees the city of Sirmione collaborate with important international entities for the creation of exhibitions and innovative photographic initiatives.

• The volume

A RIVA
SIRMIONE PHOTO RESIDENCY BOOK02
Photographs by ©Simona Ghizzoni
Texts by Roberta Valtorta, Simona Ghizzoni and the Culture and Tourism Office of the Municipality of Sirmione
Publisher: ©Comune di Sirmione
Layout and graphics: Novity
Printing: Tipografia Soldini
2024 edition, print run: 500 copies

A RIVA: il book 02 della Sirmione Photo Residency, the press kit (in Italian only)

The book is available at the Culture Office of the Municipality of Sirmione.

The Sirmione Photo Residency will continue in 2025, along with all the other events of the Sirmione Award for photography.

In the gallery we present the book, some of the shots of A RIVA and some moments of the presentation evening.