If you need a good excuse to visit Tuscany this summer, consider a trip to see the 13th edition of Cortona on the Move international photo festival in Cortona, Italy. Festival Director Veronica Nicolardi and Artistic Director Paolo Woods have pulled together 26 excellent exhibitions displayed throughout the ancient town, inviting attendees to saunter through the narrow curving streets to discover thought-provoking works of art while enjoying the charms and seductions of the town itself.
Many of the exhibitions are designed to be unique memorable experiences — with clever stagings that immerse viewers in the over-arching theme of this year’s festival: More or Less. Irina Werning’s show about runaway inflation in Argentina, for example, is presented in a room that is wallpapered with nearly worthless paper currency from that country. James Mollison’s portraits and bedrooms of children from around the world are presented in a sprawling dorm room lined with bunkbeds. Documentary photographs of makeshift dwellings of illegal immigrants in Calais are presented wryly in the sales office of a fictive real estate company. Barbara Iweins’ obsessive cataloging of every single object she owns includes a large interactive file cabinet that holds a few surprises from her personal life. Nick Hannes’ mural-size prints from his project about excess in Dubai are lit like billboards on the outer walls of the hilltop Fortress that commands outrageous views of a Tuscan valley for as far as the eye can see.
Most of the work celebrates varied, strong documentary approaches, highlighting important social issues while educating, entertaining and surprising viewers with remarkable storytelling. There is very little art for art’s sake on view, but as you proceed from one project to another, the individual exhibitions tend to connect with each other in the minds of the viewers, and that cohesion sparks some interesting thoughts and ideas that linger.
My personal favorite was a vast but tightly curated show displayed throughout an old train station building. Co-curated by Lars Lindemann and Paolo Woods, the exhibition, Get Rich or Die Tryin’, celebrates the 50th anniversary of rap and hip hop, with large luscious prints of iconic images by Dana Lixenberg and Janette Beckman, among many others — there are several rooms, and a good sound track.
Cortona itself is an amazing place with incredibly delicious food (of course), great old architecture, splendid views, and a charming ambience. And this smart festival adds greatly to the charm. The Cortona on the Move festival runs all summer until October 1. See the website for more details.
