Ricordi

With his photo book Elegia Fantastica, the internationally-active photographer has paid visual homage to the Marche in Italy. In his two comprehensive series, Ricordi (Memories) and Visioni (Visions), he explores the landscapes, the people and, above all, his own memories and perceptions of this unique region. Thanks to his family roots, he has a deep connection to the Marche, which he has been expressing through his long-term project, since 2014. The devastation caused by the earthquake of August 24, 2016, pushed him to reconsider his visual approach. The resulting Visioni selection can be seen in the current issue of LFI. This blog, however, is dedicated to the preceding group: Ricordi, which takes a fascinating photo-historical look at the photographer’s work, and reveals his photographic role models. According to Scorcelleti, “The two series are a continuation, one of the other; or rather, the yin and yang – the idea of that existential journey in search of one’s identity, in which man is, each time, forced to confront reality and magic.”

In his Ricordi series, the photographer makes a very deliberate reference to the tradition of European humanistic photography, which poetically and thematically centres around people and their daily lives. In an interview, the photographer mentioned Mario Giacomelli, Henri Cartier-Bresson and Jacques-Henri Lartigue as important role models: “All artists follow in the footsteps of the great masters who are the most similar to them, in order to create their own language. I have developed my own imagery by studying the works of the three artists mentioned. Each time, I try to recount it through my own eyes.” He actually got to know Mario Giacomelli in person, in Senigallia, which is not only the birthplace of the admired photographer, but also where Scorcelletti’s own father was born.

“Giacomelli’s photography is rich in the poetry of this land and, at the same time, it conveys that spontaneity of everyday life that characterises Italian neo-realism,” Scorcelletti explains. The work of Henri Cartier-Bresson is equally important to him: “I have always admired his ability to elegantly capture the moment, while revealing its deep meaning. To use his words, I strive to put “the mind, the eyes and the heart” into the same line of sight, every time I shoot. Like him, I try to bring out the poetic humanity of being.” Concerning his third role model, he states: “All my images then pay homage to Jacques-Henri Lartigue. He taught us the happiness of existing – the ability to always look at life through the enthusiastic eyes of a child. Thanks to Lartigue, I’m always able to marvel, and maintain in my pictures that lightness that becomes the tool to deal with the complexity of life.” A look at these photographic traditions also helps to explain the timeless elegance that defines Scorcelletti's photographs: “My intention is not to document; but to convey the universality of those places in which we can recognise ourselves.”