VILLA MALPENSATA – SPAZIO MARAINI
Unpublished Photo is an event promoted by MUSEC and the Culture and Museums Foundation of Lugano, in collaboration with 29 ARTS IN PROGRESS gallery in Milan.
Since 2018, the project has been attracting young photographers under 36 from all over the world. In 2020, MUSEC wanted to consolidate the initiative by giving it an institutional framework and a medium to long-term development perspective, with the aim of highlighting the main international trends in young art photography. MUSEC’s intention is also to establish a true archive of contemporary photography in Lugano, which will be housed alongside the 19th century collection and the collection of photography of Exoticism that the museum already possesses. The exhibition, curated by Alessia Borellini and Moira Luraschi, is set up in the renowned Spazio Maraini at Villa Malpensata in Lugano and presents 24 large-format photographic prints. The protagonists of the temporary exhibition are four young talents selected in July by the international jury of the UP21 prize, chaired by the German photographer Hans Georg Berger.
The artists deal with topical issues such as biodiversity and the erosion of natural ecosystems, war conflicts, the recovery of tradition and the importance of the link between past and present. At the end of the exhibition, the exhibited works will become part of the MUSEC collections, thus enriching the photographic collections that today count more than 40,000 works from the mid 19th century to the present day. The ex aequo winners of the 1st prize, consisting of a scholarship of chf 5,000, are the Vietnamese photographer Khanh Bui Phu and the very young Syrian photographer Mouneb Taim. The jury also wanted to include the works of Indian photographer Avinash Mishra and Li Zhang (China) in the exhibition. The special prize awarded by Artphilein Editions of Lugano, consisting of the publication of a prestigious monographic volume, went to the Vietnamese photographer Khanh Bui Phu.
Khanh Bui Phu (1987)
Born in Da Lat, Vietnam, Khanh Bui Phu is a freelance photographer passionate about the traditions and natural environments of his country. His portfolio Living as Nomads in an Aquatic Ecosystem is the result of four years spent documenting the lives of nomadic fishermen on Lake Tuyen Lam in the Western Highlands region. Tuyen Lam, which may appear to be an archetypal pristine lake, is in truth a large reservoir created in 1987 with the construction of a dam on the Tia River. Behind images of evocative and poetic intensity lies the precariousness of the daily lives of the fishermen, who live isolated on rafts, with no property or land to cultivate and no education. The intention of Khanh Bui Phu is to raise awareness of the grave danger generated by economic and social inequalities, and by environmental exploitation, a real threat to the survival of communities.
©2021 Khanh Bui Phu – Living as nomads in an aquatic ecosystem, (2016-2021)
Mouneb Taim (2001)
Born in Douma, Syria, Mouneb Taim began filming and photographing at a very young age, trying his hand at dramatically documenting the civil war in his hometown. Since 2014, as a self-taught photographer, he has consolidated and extended his photographic experience by making war reportages in different areas of Syria. The portfolio War Notes is a testimony to his work: an impressive document of everyday life in war-scarred Syria, focusing on the events in the area of Goutha and the city of Idlib, where the images on display come from. In addition to the drama of the Syrian situation, the young photographer aims to show the resistance of civilians to the harshness of war. Representations of suffering and destruction are thus interwoven with other images, which testify to the hope, determination and will to live of the Syrian people.
©2021 Mouneb Taim – Notes from the war #6, (2017-2021)
Avinash Mishra (1999)
Avinash Mishra was born in the Indian city of Maharajganj, on the border with Nepal. A graphic designer by profession, he defines himself first and foremost as a travelling photographer. His passion for photography meets his desire to celebrate and share the fascination of Hinduism’s most characteristic religious ceremonies.
The portfolio The Empire of Colours captures with extraordinary expressive power the collective involvement and frenzy of the days of the Holi festival, known as “the festival of colours”, in which participants celebrate love and the arrival of spring by throwing brightly coloured powders at each other.
In dense black and white, renouncing the easy appeal of colour, the author magnifies the ancient ceremony by trying to capture its essence. The images constitute a homage to joy and pay homage to the thousands of worshippers indulging in the solemnity of the triumph of good over evil.
©2021 Avinash Mishra – A story I cannot explain in words, (2017-2021)
Zhang Li (1991)
Born in Tongling, China, Li Zhang first started studying biotechnology. After moving to Germany, where he still lives, he decided to embrace photography, attending the Hochschule der bildenden Künste in Essen. With the project When I was a child, the artist proposes an introspective investigation of his family, reworking old shots taken by his grandfather, also a photographer. Through multiple scans and overlays, the original images are gradually blurred, creating new and surprising visual effects. People, objects and buildings are stretched, shortened, bent and rotated. The play of colours in Li Zhang’s images leads the viewer to look at the photographs as if they were in a kaleidoscope. The result is a kind of invitation to take a trip down memory lane, back to childhood.
©2021 Li Zhang – When I was a Child #10, (2020-2021)
