Matteo Sandrini - YOUMANITY photography award- 2010 finalist
Matteo Sandrini - YOUMANITY photography award - finalist
A Design and Arts graduate, Matteo’s project focused on the social dynamics of an ethnic diverse district of the affluent Italian city of Brescia where the locals feel that the place has lost its local identity. For several days and always at the same time, Matteo, 25, positioned himself in different streets of the district and
photographed people passing by. Out of individual shots he created a composite image with individuals from multi-ethnic background lined up side by side, as in a collage of social integration.
A present MAtteo works as a freelance Media and Visual Anthropological Researcher.
YOUMANITY asked Matteo Sandrini the following questions:
How did you first get into photography?
I began to take pictures at college, with the opportunity of using the dark room for developing analogical pictures I have started loving the camera.
What kind of equipment do you use?
I usually use a Canon digital reflex, but for this project I used a Nikon.
What’s the most challenging aspect of your profession?
I believe that the biggest challenge is to complete a photographic project which has a specific objective. Methodology and strict planning rules are fundamental and probably the most difficult to stick to up to completion of the project.
For YOUMANITY photography award you submitted a series of composite images that you shot in Carmine. What motivated this series?
The project aims to understand the social context of the Carmine neighborhood, in order to better appreciate its internal social dynamics. I wanted to verify in person the reality of a place often described negatively by the local media. The common opinion is that over the past few years this area has lost its original cultural identity to make room to a multiethnic community who now live there. I think that people living in the same city may not automatically mean that ‘social integration' has been achieved.The three photographic strips I submitted to this competition aim to show how some people actually avoid walking through certain areas of the city. The project, therefore, questions the concept of integration - people may cohexist in a common place but is integration there?
What do you look for in a location?
When I began the 'Carmine’ project, I set up the work in three step. First I collected the historical material, documents and articles. Then I spent some time observing and taking notes about the carmine neighborhood. Lastly, I focused on the photography and how I would present the project.
Is there a photographer past/present that you particularly admire?
I love the simplicity and softness of Luigi Ghirri's work, and am always intrigued by the enigmatic pictures of Joel Sternfeld.
What has been the most gratifying moment of your career?
My first photographic exhibition as a student at the Bauhaus Universität (Germany), I presented a project on student's accommodation/life in Weimar (Germany).
What is your next dream?
My biggest dream is to carry on with my research projects, but and above all, as the Italian poet Gabriele D'Annunzio used to say: “Memento audere semper - Remember to dare, always.”
What advice do you have for aspiring photographers?
Be original and ... be passionate about photography.