The Park

"All faces envelop an unknown, unexplored landscape; all landscapes are populated by a loved or dreamed‑of face, developing a face to come or already past" Deleuze - Guattari Life has no chapters, but places and encounters. The park is both for me. Nature, scarcely tamed, allows me to observe without being seen. The landscape easily does without me, but also knows how to accommodate. As in a relationship of intimacy and detachment, I walk the paths of the park which, even in the quietest moments, resounds with the stories of those walking beside me. The faces of others thus become part of the landscape, and, in turn, the landscape itself. I approach those I perceive as kindred spirits through that invisible thread that sparks something. Of each subject portrayed, I preserve fragments of private life, entrusted to the brevity of shared time. In my work, however, I have chosen to reveal only their names, as a discreet trace of what remains. Over the months, with each passing moment, I sought to refine a sort of emotional attunement with this place. After all, when we observe a space or a face, it is our psyche that speaks. We need only listen to it and respect it for its ability to recognise beauty, the unknown, grace and melancholy. The Park is a story that began in 2024, captured through the lens of a medium-format analogue camera. The selection I am presenting for this contest represents only a part of the project.