3.6.-27.8.2000

4th of June 2000, 12.00 Giorgio Barrera in Valokuvakeskus Nykyaika

The goal of this work is to examine behaviours and habits of the middle class.

In the beginning the bourgeoisie's charter helped to exclude the aristocracy and had, as values, the property and a certain system of order. The contemporary middle class has not cancelled these topics but it doesn't profess them but it represents them in its "modus vivendi".

This world is the world where I've grown up and where, often, the research of normality and the appearing serenity lead people to anonymity and meaningless. What I proposed myself is to investigate the human being in his own environment. I never forgot people's dignity. When I came into a house I stop myself looking at subjects and his movements in circumscribed and intimate room, and I related to other people, objects and the environment.

What I want to tell with simplicity and sincerity, without caricatures, is people acting, instead than living, they're own life. When everything is meaning and significant I ask the "actors" to stay still. I give to this stillness the meaning of a life representation. To capture life in a still picture (this paradox) is my media to create equivalence between real life represented life and photography.

Born in Cagliari (I) February 19th, 1969

E-Mail: giorgiobarrera@tin.it

"In 1997 I obtained the diploma resulting of a three years course at the School of Photography Fondazione Studio Marangoni in Florence where I attended different workshops with Philip Lorca Di Corcia, Mimmo Jodice, Vincenzo Castella, Nick Waplington, Martin Parr, T. Thorimbert, Francesco Radino, Arnaud Claas and others. "Psycologies" is the work I made as a thesis and that I completed in 1998. During the development of the work my tutor was Daniela Tartaglia professor in Photography history.

In 1995 I worked as a printer and operator of a darkroom for the "Maine Photographic Workshop" of Rockport Maine - U.S.A. and at the same time worked as an assistant for Joyce Tenneson and Joel Meyerowitz.

Since 1996 I'm Joel Meyerowitz assistant for his color workshops in Italy where I am responsible for the planning and searching of a portrait course.

Since 1997 I work in cooperation with the Biagiotti Contemporary Art Gallery in Florence."