June 19 – November 6 2022
Giorgio Armani launched Magnum Photos – Colors, Places, Faces at Armani/Silos in time for Milan fashion week. This composite and complex narrative depicts a distinctive fusion of art, journalism, and storytelling through a kaleidoscope of varied viewpoints.
The exhibition, which Giorgio Armani and Magnum Photos collaborated to create, gives a diverse viewpoint as seen by ten worldwide photographers and their individual understandings of photography. These artists share a passion to investigate reality by turning ideas and feelings into images. Some of them are still working today, while others have passed away.
The spectrum is broad: from Christopher Anderson’s China, focusing on people’s faces rather than architecture, to Olivia Arthur’s Dubai, seen through the eyes of a castaway who returns after fifty years to a city that has grown from a village into a megalopolis; from Morocco by Bruno Barbey, a long tale of a country that has escaped modernity, to Werner Bischof’s New York, portrayed in color shots that immortalise its dynamism; from architecture seen as socio-political space by René Burri, to coasts seen as borders between land and water by Harry Gruyaert; from Martin Parr’s biting dissection of English life, to Tokyo and Venice captured by Gueorgui Pinkhassov through stolen shots and unexpected angles; from Iran depicted in its day-to-day life by Newsha Tavakolian, to the saturated colors of Latin America and the Caribbean as seen by Alex Webb.
“Photography has always fascinated me because the emotion it inspires is very similar to the sense of surprise felt when observing reality from an unexpected point of view. In particular, I admire the work of the Magnum photographers, which I got to know when I myself began to see the world with new eyes. Colors, Places, Faces takes us on a colorful journey through worlds and cultures near and far, transfigured by each of the through their own personal vision. It is the attention to reality that fascinates me about their photographs, which are never simple reportages and are all so different from each other”, artists, comments Giorgio Armani.
Magnum Photos, one of the most well-known photo companies in the world, was established by Robert Capa, Henri Cartier-Bresson, “Chim” Seymour, and George Rodger seventy-five years ago. The name pays honor to the lofty goals Capa had for the project’s future.
Magnum has and will continue to use photographs to convey the world’s story. When purists still thought black-and-white photography was inelegant, Magnum photographers were among the first to go against the grain and move from black-and-white to color photography. At a time when widespread travel was not yet possible, travelers shared their journeys and discoveries on the pages of magazines and periodicals by describing the locales, inhabitants, and cultures. Magnum photographers, keen observers of history, continue to present alternative viewpoints and new angles on the world.
Giorgio Armani is supporting Save the Children’s initiatives with this exhibition in an effort to combat educational poverty and school dropout. Save the Children is an international organization that has worked for over 100 years to save vulnerable children and secure their future.
Armani / Silos
Via Bergognone 40
Milan, Italy
www.armanisilos.com
