Barcelona, Plaza Europa

edition 1/5 plus 1 PA total of all sizes

Over the last few years I have photographed some of the most important contemporary buildings in major European cities, most of them built within the last decade.

Before each trip, I methodically research my subjects and have recently come to the conclusion that many of these buildings have two key aspects in common.

The first is their very prominence; the emphasis they place on aesthetic impact. It is clear that they are products of contemporary society, and also that even the more complicated structures were designed with their exteriority in mind. This is not to say, however, that they are not also fully functional buildings.

The second aspect was the uniformity of planning and form. Structures from different countries featured the same ideas and styles which are often far removed from local traditions; so much so that it can be difficult to place a building in a specific country if you do not know the location beforehand. It is as though the European Union, having struggled to achieve political and social unity, has somehow succeeded on an architectural level.

For this project I focused on these themes, emphasizing my subjects’ common aesthetic components, working with lines, materials and reflections and playing with perspectives. I sought pureness of form to create a context that is truly representative of our age.

View the full collection by Giovanni Presutti:
www.purephoto.com/gipresutti

Born in Florence, Italy, on 03 30 1965, where he still lives. In 1998 he graduates from the photography school Art.E in Florence. From 2003 to 2005 he develops the project “Reflexions” in Paris, with others photographers under the supervision of Giorgia Fiorio and Gabriel Bauret. Then He had an intense exhibition activity in Italy and abroad either in public than private museums and gallery, in several cities as New York, London, Paris, Los Angeles, Saint Petersburg, Moscow, Tel Aviv, Milan, Rome, Turin, Venice, Florence, Naples, Pietrasanta, Genoa ( last of them in Biennale di Venezia 2011 and Rencontres Des Arles 2012). He got several prizes. First prize in A better world in 2008 ( third in 2010), first prize in portfolio ariosto 2007, Finalist in Arte laguna Prize in 2011 and 2012, Winner of Premio Musa in 2011 in the Biennale of the Absurd in Castelvetro Modena, winner of Memorial Mario Giacomelli in 2011, selected for Descubrimientos Photoespana 2012, finalist of Premio Ponchielli 2012, winner of Donkeyart Prize 2012, winner of Fofu phot’art challenge 2012, winner of Malamegi prize 2014, winner of IFAP prize in 2017. He published in several magazines, some of them China Life Magazine, Vanity fair, Espresso, Sette Magazine. In 2008 he published the book “Mirror”, in 2013 the ebook "Eolo", in 2015 the book "Contemporanea" and in 2018 the book "The era of beyond truth". He is a member of Synap(see) collective.

Giovanni Presutti