By There is Italy as a country and there is the image of Italy. Fortunately the two definitions do not coincide with one another nor does one correspond to the other. Here in America we can observe how Italy is still perceived as a dream: an enviable lifestyle, a point of reference for culture worldwide and the essence of beauty widely spread in a territory full of history and works of art, wanted by the powerful of the past that have chosen to communicate to posterity with eternal symbols; for this reason they have recognized the necessity and the unique role of art and of the artist. Nowadays this has all changed, Italy ages badly and communicates even worse. It resists in the image and in the memories because everyone wants it as it should be but is not anymore: torn apart by corruption before any other “crisis”, capable of adulterating its own food products, tarnishing an immense and unique patrimony worldwide, not even capable of using art to communicate, grasped on the image of its past until it lasts. Let’s all give a helping hand so that this abyss is shut before it’s too late. Let’s distance ourselves from the people who are always complaining and let’s act also from here, from this privileged observation point that is New York, to help Italy revitalize its truth of being a wonderful country. Let’s take the advantage of seeing Italy from a distance, above all influences, controversies, political quarrels, to help the country find itself again. The TV show 60 minutes aired on January 3, 2016 by CBS on the “agromafia” is a dangerously alarming signal: let’s make treasure of it and not wait that the image of our country corresponds to the reality of this disturbing moment. Let’s promote the “right” and “honest” Italy that can and must emancipate itself from the conspiracy of those who want to poison her, by putting to use all our possibilities, ideas and capabilities. Let’s get to work! Italy begins again from here.
Fabrizio Ferri began his career as a photojournalist in 1970 at the age of seventeen, taking photographs of Italy’s political life. He then shifted his attention to the fashion world, and moved temporarily to London in 1974 and to New York a year later. He soon became one of the most sought- after photographers, working for top fashion magazines as Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Marie Claire, Elle, Vanity Fair, Interview, GQ and Esquire. Acclaimed internationally for his sophisticated yet pure vision, Ferri has photographed many iconic portraits of the last decades. He has captured Isabella Rossellini, Naomi Watts, Renzo Piano, Peter Marino, Oliver Stone, Pedro Almodóvar, Sting, Madonna, Adrien Brody, Monica Bellucci, Naomi Campbell, Julia Roberts, Charlize Theron, Beyoncé, Susan Sarandon, Marina Abramovich, and Willem Dafoe among many others. Ferri has also authored campaigns for leading luxury brands and corporations, such as Bulgari, Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, Ferragamo, Valentino, Maserati, Ferrari as well as McDonald’s, L’Oreal and Lancôme. Ferri’s photographic essays have been published in several books: Open Eyed (1989), Acqua (1993), Aria (1996). In 2004 he presented in Rome Forma I – II (Design and Architecture Nudes), an exhibition and two books showcasing his photographs of Italian Rationalist architecture and design. In 2005 he published Fontane Romane. In 2015, Ferri published four new books: American Ballet Theatre: 75th Anniversary, One of 100, Roberto Bolle: Voyage into Beauty and Stop Think Give, which features over 200 celebrities and helped the public charity Save the Children raise 30 million dollars worldwide. As a cinematographer and director, Ferri filmed two award winning films, Prelude (1997) and Carmen (1998), as well as Acqua (1993), Aria (1996), Passage (2013), and Rethink Energy (2014). A refined composer, he conceived and wrote the script and the music for Anima, a contemporary opera with a photographic set designed by Ferri himself. It premiered at the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples in 2010. He also authored the score for Passage, his short film screened at the Venice International Film Festival in 2013, which was adapted into a live performance for the show Roberto Bolle and Friends at the Arena di Verona in 2014. Ferri also composed part of the music for The Piano Upstairs, a dance and theater show that premiered at the Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto in 2013. As a writer, he wrote the short novel Discrete Adventures of Vito Zuccheretti, An Ordinary Man, published in 1992. For his pragmatic creativeness and comprehensive world-view, Fabrizio Ferri embodies the contemporary prototype of the “Renaissance Man”. As a young entrepreneur, he founded Industria Superstudio in Milan in 1983, and later opened its New York City outpost in 1991. With multifunctional studios and musical and digital research departments, Industria is the first full-service photographic complex of its kind. Industria is also the name of Ferri’s fashion label, founded in 1991. In 1997, in Milan he founded “L’Università dell’Immagine” (University for the Image), the first institute with a curriculum focused on synesthetics and the creative process. In 2001, Fabrizio Ferri created and designed, among others, the brand “Eataly”, which was sold to Oscar Farinetti in 2002. Born in Rome, Ferri lived in Milan for several years, he currently lives and works in New York City.
