Ventidue Agosto
Ventidue Agosto is a project by Gabriele Rosati, an Italian Art Director and Photographer. The research is an in-depth analysis of family dynamics and relationships based on self-understanding and observation of family members. The research consists of images, video footage, and text that accompanies the project and offers a path from the inception of the project to shooting the story. This is a personal journey that was born from the act of coming out, revealing an additional authentic layer of the self before the family. Gabriele summarizes the research with the following words, “The most difficult thing is certainly to find the courage to do it. The most beautiful thing to have had it.”
Through the intimate, deeply touching, and emotional video, in which Gabriele shows care for his mother by helping her dress, get on her feet, and eventually hugging her, we witness an ultimate expression of tender love to a parent, love that is beyond anything else. The powerful desire — to uncover the last layer of self-identification and reach a new level in a child-parent relationship is beyond definitions — occurs right before the viewer's gaze. Gabriele builds a world, a place in which, as he explains, “both the other and I were free to decide what to build, unveil, see and then tell.” The images of the family members, the paint covering their faces, the emotions gently unveiled to the viewer are a statement of care and eternal love.
‘We were in bed, it was August 22, and it was very hot. I felt the urge to say: this is me. From then on, it was a constant search for a world.’
The project, Ventidue Agosto, is a personal one, as you describe, it has to do with the journey, the emotional layers of relationships in your family connected to the decision of coming out. What was the main point of this journey, which drove you to the desire to turn it into a narrative?
I think the turning point that made me decide on this intimate and extremely self-analytical journey was the day I told my mum. We were in bed, it was August 22, and it was very hot. I felt the urge to say: this is me. From then on, it was a constant search for a world. A world I could visualise, translate and make tangible: to me, to my mother, and to others. My father said to me afterwards: “maybe I understand too.” I hadn't had the courage to tell him before.
‘The video was my greatest gift to her. It was a physical way of telling her: thank you. For me, a hug is the most intense gesture that exists between two people.’
The video dedicated to your mother is a deep and tense experience. The symbolism of the white room, the matching clothes (the blood connection), the emphasis put on the assistance dressing up, and the care for each movement of the body allows the viewer to get closer to the family dynamics and emotions throughout the journey. At what stage did you decide to shoot a short film, and which elements were of the utmost importance to you to preserve in the film?
The video was my greatest gift to her. It was a physical way of telling her: thank you. For me, a hug is the most intense gesture that exists between two people. Even more intense than kissing. It's that moment when you feel the other person's body pressed against yours. It is a purely physical act that has always made me feel safe. I wanted to preserve the daily act of caring — as she was with me — I wanted to be like that with her and tell her: “I am here.” Tying her shoes, helping her to stand up, doing her hair — these were all gestures she had always performed on me as a child, but at that moment, I was the adult, and she was the child. I wanted to be that person who was helping, who wanted to take care of someone. I hope she felt safe.
‘I think this was the most liberating act: to have had the courage to do it. I tried to make my imagination, everyone's imagination. I tried to create a bridge where the viewer and I could meet, free ourselves, and embrace each other.’
The themes of liberation and revealing reality come in the tension between the Kantian “You must!” and the Nietzschean “I want!” as you explain in the presentation of the research for this project. Could you describe the steps of the research and the central notions that resonated with you, eventually leading the project to take this form of video and image presentation of your story?
I wanted to try to create an imaginary city. A city that is a no-place, a journey. A parallel dimension, made of sublayers, that could be dismantled and reassembled depending on the observer’s perception and their life. A space where both the other and I were free to decide what to build, unveil, see and then tell. I tried to make myself accessible. In everything and for everything. I laid myself bare to everyone. I think this was the most liberating act: to have had the courage to do it. I tried to make my imagination, everyone's imagination. I tried to create a bridge where the viewer and I could meet, free ourselves, and embrace each other. Video and photos have only been mediums through which I decided to tell this story.
‘I hope that the strongest feeling that my project leaves is one of urgency. When you have it, you have to face it, look at it, digest it, and throw it out. Whatever it is. I needed to do that.’
With the images, you present us with a family dynamic. With the paint covering the faces of family members, we get closer to understanding the narrative and uncovering our feelings. What is the emotion you'd like the viewer to remain with after being exposed to the project?
I hope that the fact that I filmed my family members does not create a barrier for those who watch it. I have tried to make it universal, 'public,' and accessible to all. They were my mediums of analysing myself, my change, and my act of awareness. But for everyone else, I hope it can become their own path, their own tools to do what I did: free myself. I hope that the strongest feeling that my project leaves is one of urgency. When you have it, you have to face it, look at it, digest it, and throw it out. Whatever it is. I needed to do that. To design and experience an intimate conversation between myself and my family. I also hope that this project gives courage to people. I still have to find it more completely, but at least this project has been my starting point.
What was the most challenging and the most satisfying part of working on Ventidue Agosto?
The most difficult thing is certainly to find the courage to do it. The most beautiful thing to have had it.
