‘Silence Is a Gift' by Ciro Battiloro
Intimacy, understood as closeness and proximity, is a form of silent and discreet resistance. It is a refuge from the passage of time, from existential crises, and from all the disintegrating forces imposed on us by contemporary society: standardisation, trivialisation, social inequalities, and violence.
I've been given the gift of being welcomed into the homes and lives of people. Every time I crossed the threshold of their homes, I was asked if I had eaten and how my family was doing. These questions are not merely a matter of courtesy, but tangible signs of something deeper: care for the other.
Probably only those who have experienced deep solitude can truly be with others. After all, what is photography if not a way of reckoning with one's own solitude—and overcoming it through sharing, which becomes memory and creation?
Portraying the everyday lives of people by being part of it and celebrating the breadth and richness of its emotions is what interests me most. The wonder of the encounter is the spark from which everything arises, and that wonder, deepened over time, becomes admiration for what is alive in its most essential and authentic form.
I've witnessed new lives being born, children becoming teenagers and then parents themselves, and I've had to say goodbye forever to some people. All this has reminded me how fragile human beings are—and yet, in the gazes, faces, and caresses of the people I've photographed, I've found a strength and tenderness that give meaning to our passage on this planet.
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