Paolo Ventura: Winter Stories - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1597111252 ISBN 13: 9781597111256

Publisher: Aperture, 2009

Synopsis

In this luxuriously produced limited edition, Paolo Ventura invents an imaginative series of photographs depicting scenes from the memory banks of an old circus performer as he looks back on his life. What the performer revisits are not moments of great drama, but rather fleetingly recalled glimpses of an everyday life, "images that he had thought to have never seen, quick moments he unknowingly observed as he raised his eyes to the clock hung at the corner of the block." Using his own childhood memories, beautiful miniature figures and sophisticated sets, Ventura re-envisions a simpler time in 1930s Italy, but his darker vision--with its shadowy backdrops and retreating figures--reminds us that this is not quite Eden. Skillfully crafted and hauntingly evocative, the work is filled with the sweet melancholy of an era, but remains timeless in its ability to resonate with contemporary audiences. This monograph contains an engaging sequence of images, ephemera from Ventura's working process and a selection of the artful drawings he creates as guides to his elaborate sets.
Born in Cuba in 1968, raised in Italy and now a resident of New York City, Paolo Ventura studied at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera in Milan in the early 1990s. His work has been exhibited internationally, including at Forma International Center for Photography, Milan, the Rencontres de la Photographie, Arles, France and Maison Europénne de la Photographie, Paris. Ventura is represented by Hasted Hunt, New York.

About this title

About the Author:

Paolo Ventura (born in Milan, 1968) graduated from the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera in Milan in 1991. His work has been exhibited internationally, including at Forma International Center for Photography, Milan; Rencontres de la Photographie, Arles, France; and Maison Européenne de la Photographie, Paris. He also created a series of works for the Italian pavilion at the 2011 Venice Biennale. His works have been acquired by prominent collections, including the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.; and the Margulies Collection, Miami. His monographs include War Souvenir (2006), The Automaton (2012), and Short Stories (Aperture, 2016).

Review:

"A masterful storyteller, Paolo Ventura brings imaginary tales from Italian history to life with dressed up dolls, tabletop sets, and staged photography." -- Paul Laster --Flavorwire

"Taking visible cues from filmmakers like Federico Fellini, Ventura carefully constructs and photographs what indeed seem like miniature movie sets. They are haunting approximations of old world Italy inhabited by spectral circus performers... these are the faded memories recalled and romanticized during the winter of one performer's life." -- Sarah Munro --Magenta Magazine

"These are the inexperienced memories of an inexistent circus performer, that somewhere in Paolo Ventura's mind is now coming alive and we can assist as a spectator to his urge to tell us his memories, as his life is coming to an end. And even though we have the well-founded suspicion that none of this has actually ever taken place, we still desire to catch a glimpse of reality into this fabulously constructed world." -- Claudia Buzzetti --E-Magazine: Art Beyond Aesthetics

"Skillfully crafted and hauntingly evocative, the work is filled with a sweet melancholy of an era, but remains timeless in its ability to resonate with contemporary audiences." --cadoc.nl

About this edition

• Publisher: Aperture
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1597111252
• ISBN 13: 9781597111256
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 119