A journey around Mount Etna, in the words of Sicilian writer Nadia Terranova and the images of photographer Stefano Graziani.
The Sicilians call Etna "a muntagna", with a mix of awe and familiarity—the same sentiment Nadia Terranova, as a Sicilian from Messina, feels every time she returns to those parts. The book tells the tale of a short trip in November made on board the Circumetnea, the railway line that circles the volcano. Together with her travelling companions, the writer evokes Franco Battiato, whom she elects as the volcano's guardian, superimposing past and present in her recollections, returning to a place that is familiar but at the same time distant, in search of the spirit of Etna. Stefano Graziani's photographs delve into the anthropology of places and people, restoring the power of a natural setting in which humans are largely relegated to the role of spectators.
Nadia Terranova (born 1978 in Messina, Italy) has published the novels Gli anni al contrario (Einaudi 2015), Addio fantasmi (Einaudi 2018), Trema la notte (Einaudi 2022), the short story collection Come una storia d'amore (Giulio Perrone Editore 2020) as well as various books for children, including Aladino (Orecchio Acerbo 2020), Il segreto (Mondadori 2021), Il cortile delle sette fate (Guanda 2022), Il mare dappertutto (Emme Edizioni 2023), Scintilla (Mondadori 2024). Her works have been translated around the world.
Stefano Graziani (born 1971 in Bologna) has always been interested in photography projects in book form, and he treads along the borders between photography, art and architecture.
Graziani is the author of
Questioning Pictures (Fondazione Prada, 2017);
Carnac or les Alignements (a+mbookstore, 2018);
Mostra Fotografica (Quodlibet 2022);
Picture Window Frame (a+m bookstore 2022);
The Lives of Documents (CCA Montreal / König Books, 2024). He edited the volume
Jeff Wall, Gestus. Scritti sull'arte e la fotografia (Quodlibet, 2013). He is co-founder of the magazines
San Rocco and
Genda. His works have been exhibited internationally by institutions such as Fondazione Prada in Milan, the Venice Architecture Biennial or the European Art Biennial Manifesta. He teaches on the Master in Photography course at the IUAV in Venice, at the NABA in Milan, and at the Freie Universität in Bolzano.
