An extraordinary achievement for three RUFA Alumni from the Photography program: Daniele Cimaglia, Giuseppe Odore, and Serena Radicioli have been selected among the winners of the prestigious Luigi Ghirri Prize. Thanks to this important recognition, they will have the opportunity to exhibit their projects within Fotografia Europea, one of the most relevant festivals in the contemporary photography scene.
Daniele Cimaglia and Giuseppe Odore stood out with the project La dote di Latera, a collaborative work that explores the value of memory and cultural heritage through participatory art and photography.
Serena Radicioli was selected with Non sei più tornato, an intimate and visual investigation into loss and absence, born from personal research into family history.
The Luigi Ghirri Prize and the theme “Unire/Bridging”
The Luigi Ghirri Prize is part of Giovane Fotografia Italiana, the open call dedicated to promoting photography talents under 35 in Italy. This year, an international jury selected seven projects that will be exhibited in the collective exhibition Unire/Bridging. The goal of the exhibition is to stimulate reflection on how images can act as visual bridges, fostering connections, dialogue, and care towards the external world. The finalist artists compete for the Luigi Ghirri Prize, worth 4,000 euros, along with other recognitions, including the Nuove Traiettorie – GFI mention in Stockholm, which will offer a selected artist a study and research period, and a scholarship for the Photo-Match portfolio review program at Fotofestiwal Łódź.
The projects in detail
La dote di Latera – Daniele Cimaglia and Giuseppe Odore
The project revolves around an ancient tradition of the village of Latera, where until the 1950s, the cultivation of hemp for textile fiber production was an integral part of the local economy. Through a participatory art process, the artists collected and reassembled stories linked to the tradition of the bridal dowry, creating a large sheet with fabrics donated by the inhabitants and decorating it with cyanotype prints that reconstruct a vintage photograph of the village’s seamstresses.
This work celebrates collective memory and invites reflection on a more sustainable production model, in contrast to the environmental impact of the contemporary textile industry. Hemp, cultivated using natural methods, represents an ecological resource that could offer alternative solutions to fast fashion.
Non sei più tornato – Serena Radicioli
Serena Radicioli’s project originates from a personal story. On the evening of October 29, two criminal groups arranged a meeting for a showdown that ended in tragedy. Among the victims was the artist’s father.
Raised in a context of unanswered questions, Serena embarked on a research journey through documents, archival photographs, and testimonies, reconstructing a complex and painful family history. Non sei più tornato is a work that intertwines personal memory and photographic investigation, addressing the theme of loss and absence with an intense and moving visual narrative.
