A photographic journey through the city of Genoa, exploring the past of historic buildings, the contemporaneity of the first modern museums, and Franco Albini's interiors.
The protagonist of this new book by Giovanna Silva is the city of Genoa. From spontaneous walks through Genoa, in search of its contemporary architecture—hidden between causeways, sea, and steep hills—Silva moves to Franco Albini's interiors. Albini, called to design and rethink the city's museum system by the legendary figure of Caterina Marcenaro—the first historian of Italian art, thwarted by the entire male clan of the time—builds and perfects pieces of Genoa making it a more modern city. Silva's book is a look at these places that combine the past of historic buildings with the contemporaneity of the first modern museums. Her photos are in dialogue with those of
Paolo Monti, who instead photographed Albini's work during construction at the end of the forties.
"Genoa's token, as we know, is the Lanterna, and not much is even asked of it to play this role: at least, no more than a minimum of photogenicity. At the foot of the Lanterna, which is the monumental lighthouse that has watched over its harbour since the twelfth century, Genoa can be as disorderly as it wishes."—Valter Scelsi
Giovanna Silva (born 1980 in Milan) is an Italian photographer, writer and publisher. Her photographic books have been published by
Mousse, Hatje Cantz, and
Nero among others. Her work has been shown at the 10th and 14th Venice architectural biennales, MACRO in Rome, Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa in Venice, the Triennale in Milan, the American Academy in Rome, FRAC Orléans, c/o Berlin, the Biennale de Rabat 2019, and the Italian Cultural Institute in New York. She is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of
Humboldt Books and the co-founder of San Rocco magazine. She teaches Photography at NABA Milan, IUAV Venice's master in photography program, and ISIA Urbino.
