AUTORITRATTO | MARIO CRESCI

Autoritratto is a photograph made by the artist Mario Cresci in 1979.
Known for his inclination towards experimentation, in this artwork, Cresci challenges the conventional norms that aim a clear and delineated representation of the subject’s face in a portrait. Instead, he decides to depict his own face in motion, and consequently, unreadable.
The artwork is part of the Interni mossi project, a series of photographs taken inside a house where all human figures are intentionally captured in motion.

What emerges is an interesting and deep contrast between the stillness of the surrounding environment, with well-defined and delineated objects, and the dynamism of the human figure, serving as a metaphor for the unstoppable and elusive flow of life. The juxtaposition of the mobile and the immobile is a recurring element in Cresci’s practice; within these dynamics, the artist explores how the passage of time changes people and situations.

The choice of a common and spartan set, filled with objects more or less typical for a house from that era, creates a resonance with the viewer’s memory: these are situations and scenarios never truly experienced, but evoke a sense of familiarity, as if they were temporarily forgotten.

Autoritratto is a window opened onto the artist’s soul. His technical skill, compositional choice, and emotional intensity turn this photograph into an artwork that invites the viewers to reflect on their own interiority and the concept of change.

Mario Cresci
Autoritratto, from the series Interni mossi, Barbarano Romano, 1979
Gelatin silver print on paper, 48,5 x 58 cm
© Mario Cresci, Fondo Lanfranco Colombo, Regione Lombardia, Museo di Fotografia Contemporanea
The artwork is part of the group exhibition “L’Italia è un desiderio. Fotografie, paesaggi e visioni 1842 – 2022. Le Collezioni Alinari e Mufoco”.
Scuderie del Quirinale, via XXIV Maggio 16, Roma
From July 1st to September 3rd
Curated by Matteo Balduzzi (Mufoco) and Rita Scartoni (Fondazione Alinari)

23/08/2023