Valentina Benigni - Respiro

Exhibition from August 3 to September 4, 2021

"Respiro" in Spanish literally means breath.

Breath is also a symbol of life and one of the simplest gestures we cling to in search of peace and freedom. A natural and simple gesture, which the pandemic has so threatened, like our certainties, our health and our daily life.

I had the privilege of photographing these wonderful artists during the health crisis and found their dances different, mixing energy and passion in an intense way.

They danced by "breathing": they inspired freedom and hope, and exhaled fear and uncertainty, with intensity and emotion. Thus, I wanted to trace their movements and use this metaphor through my photographs to make it live in time, beyond constraints, beyond the curfew and the confinement.

© Valentina Benigni

About the Artist

As a photographer and photojournalist, I capture emotions and let my images tell the story. Passionate about photography since childhood, I have always cultivated my passion by experimenting with creativity and my emotions through the camera. Life led me to build a solid international career in the financial sector, which after 11 years I decided to leave to live my passion of photography. Welcome to an important part of my photographic universe: dance. I was a dancer for more than 15 years, until an injury forced me to quit. I recognise the emotion and passion behind each movement and I reveal it by dancing through my camera.

For me photography is not only about capturing a moment, but also about showing the emotion behind that moment. Everything in a static photograph must be able to speak, to tell a story, to touch the viewer. For me, photography is about emotion, soul, and life. As with everything in life, we will only remember the moments that have touched us deeply, opening up a space of eternal moments within us.