1st place
gold star award
Valerio Figuccio
italy 
Photo © Valerio Figuccio
title
Animate sculptures
I'm very interested in the details and the contrast between pure light and shadows. I would like to induce in the audience a feeling of calm, mystery and silence, in some way a kind of suspension of time. Aesthetics play always a very important role in my works, becoming also in this case a form of contemplation.
From 2007 to 2012, I studied set design at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma. In 2009, I received a scholarship for guest studies in photography at the Academy of Visual Arts Leipzig, where I developed my skills in photography and video. After graduating in Rome, I continued my studies in Leipzig, earning a BA HONS in Media Arts in 2015.
In my photographic and video work, I explore poetic and ephemeral dynamics of the human mind, such as memory, isolation, and insecurity. I aim to evoke calm, a sense of suspension, and mystery in the viewer. Aesthetics and fascination play a central role in my practice, sometimes becoming themselves subjects of contemplation.
My projects have been presented in numerous international exhibitions. With the work "L'esanime Animato", I was a finalist in the Arte Laguna Prize 2019, exhibited at the Arsenale in Venice.
I have also worked as a photographer and videographer for the Leipzig Opera House in Germany and on various other video productions.
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entry description
This photographic series comes from my long journey in Australia and Asia between 2017-2018. Some of them were taken in the wild nature, others in natural national parks. The whole series represents animals depicted as kind of animate sculptures.I'm very interested in the details and the contrast between pure light and shadows. I would like to induce in the audience a feeling of calm, mystery and silence, in some way a kind of suspension of time. Aesthetics play always a very important role in my works, becoming also in this case a form of contemplation.
about the photographer
1988, Rome, Italy / Lives and works in ItalyFrom 2007 to 2012, I studied set design at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma. In 2009, I received a scholarship for guest studies in photography at the Academy of Visual Arts Leipzig, where I developed my skills in photography and video. After graduating in Rome, I continued my studies in Leipzig, earning a BA HONS in Media Arts in 2015.
In my photographic and video work, I explore poetic and ephemeral dynamics of the human mind, such as memory, isolation, and insecurity. I aim to evoke calm, a sense of suspension, and mystery in the viewer. Aesthetics and fascination play a central role in my practice, sometimes becoming themselves subjects of contemplation.
My projects have been presented in numerous international exhibitions. With the work "L'esanime Animato", I was a finalist in the Arte Laguna Prize 2019, exhibited at the Arsenale in Venice.
I have also worked as a photographer and videographer for the Leipzig Opera House in Germany and on various other video productions.
back to gallery
