Jacopo Valentini

VIS MONTIUM

The attraction is constant and strong, due to its symbolic nature and it being indisputably a landmark. Seen from afar, it resembles a sacred altar, to be identified through multiple interpretations. The characteristics of a territory repeat themselves across the world in numerous ways. What is it then that keeps me connected to a space? To the territory I am investigating?

With contemporary knowledge, topography is no longer sufficient; it is the specificities of a place, an area, that alongside the landscape provide the opportunity to diagonally understand a system. A system which is unique, but not in its topography. What are the ropes that tie me to this area? Specifically, I am talking of the Pietra of Bismantova in the Reggiane hills; it’s very similar to the adjacent Modenese one for instance, but at its core already very different.
Is this territorial anomaly unique, or is it applicable to other situations? Could the imaginary that the Pietra of Bisamantova creates be replicable in other circumstances? Is there a possibility for territorial displacement? These are some of the questions that my research aims to uncover, by reflecting on the hereditary aspect of the Pietra, real or not.
In this case I would like the Pietra of Bismantova to demonstrate the capacity to touch upon different fields, with different intensities, to pass through different layers and go beyond. We have the opportunity to establish what are the elements that truly characterise a territory, as well as the opportunity to be disoriented.

Project presented in Giovane Fotografia Italiana #07 | ROPES/CORDE

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