Road to the message.
Black and white photography has always been my choice, first with film and then with digital. It’s like a necessity to me, to be honest. It allows me to get directly to the essence, to work on the concept without being distracted by the colours.
When I see a black-and-white photograph, especially one shot in the streets, I don’t see the absence of colours. On the contrary, I see all colours, together with the light and shade that construct shapes, give depth and make the subject stand out. Instead of being struck by the blue of the clear sky, the green parasols of a pavement café, the bright red of a coat, we notice the lady in an alley carrying her shopping, the dialogue between two men of different ages, colours and nationalities, the girl talking over the phone while biking through her city.
Narratives start to take shape, we create them almost spontaneously. Is the lady in the alley waiting for someone? Will the two men talk about their homes, about lost memories? Is the girl biking towards the person on the other end of the line?
Colours are journalism, black and white is a story.
And freedom: because the story isn’t in the photo itself, but in the mind of all viewers, who fill in the voids with their own imagination.
