Witnesses of Our Time. Italian photographers awards from the World Press Photo Foundation (Verona, 6/20/10-9/5/10)

Testimoni del nostro tempo. I fotografi italiani premiati dal World Press Photo
International Center of Photography Scavi Scaligeri
June 20 - September 5, 2010

" The “Testimoni del nostro tempo – Witnesses of Our Time” exhibition brings together, for the first time in Italy, photos by Italian photographers who won awards from the World Press Photo Foundation.

In the more than 50 years of the Foundation’s history (from 1955 to 2010), 47 Italian photographers have distinguished themselves in the competition, winning a total of 74 different awards including the World Press Photo of the Year, which was presented to Francesco Zizola in 1996 and Pietro Masturzo in 2009.

The exhibition, that brings together 102 photographs representing the work of 38 photographers, was conceived and organized by 10b photography, and curated by Daniele Protti, editor of the periodical “L’Europeo”. The magazine’s entire March 2010 issue was dedicated to the exhibition and featured an introduction by Ferdinando Scianna.

Protti wrote: “Curating this exhibition and producing the related issue of L’Europeo was not unusual, as it coincides with the publication’s historical and editorial identity. According to Arrigo Benedetti: ‘People look at articles, but read the photos’.

Although this initially appears paradoxical, it actually affirms a supremacy that neither TV nor the internet can challenge – an exceptional photo is not merely an ‘adornment’, but rather an integral part of the story”.

The exhibition, which opens in Verona after first appearing in Rome and at the Artèfoto Festival (co-producer of the event), offers visitors an incredible opportunity to see the work of many Italian photographers, who often do not have the chance to publish their work in Italy, and to explore an amazing “cross-section” of the history of the World Press Photo Contest, beginning with the award received by Gias Carobbi in 1965 and ending with the 2009 Photo of the Year, won by Pietro Masturzo. "

* photo gallery