What is the best thing that I love about my work?
As a visual artist and using different expressive media, I feel a great freedom of expression and capability to deal with everything shaping human life. I love this possibility to develop an independent view of the world and to highlight crucial aspects of life, as the manipulation of cultural differences and the difficulty of dialogue which are generating dramatic events. As an example, my recent photographic work Re-velation addresses the delicate issue of the manipulation of cultural differences, starting from the situation of immigrant Muslim women in Europe. Re-velation uses the veil as a protagonist, an accessory present in all the main cultures and now symbolic of multiple meanings, with the aim to raise awareness on the ever more pressing need to establish mechanisms for dialogue and reception.
What is my idea of perfect happiness?
A quiet comfortable place and an idea for a new project
What is my greatest fear?
Fear to loose people I love
What is the trait that I most deplore in myself?
Having stopped driving cars from many years
Which living persons in my profession do I most admire?
Versatile artists, in different disciplines, with a profound impact to art (Jan Fabre, Robert Wilson, Damien Hirst, Shirin Neshat, Peter Greenaway, Orhan Pamuk with the incredible Museum of Innocence).
Some photographers from Northern Europe who have influenced my art (Elina Brotherus; Anni Leppälä; Ruud van Empel; Erwin Olaf; Carla van de Puttelaar; Hellen van Meene)
What is my greatest extravagance?
To be a serial accumulator of books
On what occasion would I lie?
Maybe when the lie will bring about less evil than the truth.
What is the thing that I dislike the most in my work?
Facing prejudices and failing to disrupt them
When and where was I the happiest, in my work?
The acquisition of my work from an important Museum in Italy
If I could, what would I change about myself?
My height
What is my greatest achievement in work?
Stimulate discussion on important issues of our contemporaneity
Where would I most like to live?
I like living where I am now, a big house with garden and orchard in the countryside above Genoa.
I would like to have another house in the historical center of Genoa.
What is my most treasured possession?
My family and the archive of my images
What is my most marked characteristic?
Curiosity and imagination
What is my most inspirational location, in my city?
My garden
What is my favourite place to eat and drink, in my city?
“Mangiabuono”, a small “trattoria” in the historical center of Genoa serving fantastic fried fresh fish
What books influenced my life and how?
“Alice in Wonderland” by Lewis Carroll; it was the first book to stimulate my imagination
The tales of a “Thousand and one nights” that have increased my interest in other cultures
“The interpretation of dreams” by Sigmund Freud arousing my interest in psychoanalysis
The great tragedies of Shakespeare, the fables of Andersen, the plays of Oscar Wilde.
“À la recherche du temps perdu” by Marcel Proust
The books of Oliver Sacks
Plus I love reading artist biographies
Who are my favorite writers?
In addition to the authors mentioned above: Jane Austen, A. S. Byatt, Elizabeth Arnim, Virginia Woolf, Orhan Pamuk, Paul Auster and many others
You Only Die Once. What music would I listen on my last day?
“The piano” by Michael Nyman; “The Gnossiennes” by Erik Satie; “My Funny Valentine” by Chet Baker; “Perfect day” by Lou Reed.
Who is my hero or heroine in fiction?
Shéhérazade from “Thousand and one nights”; Orlando by Virginia Woolf
Who are my heroes and heroines in real life?
Anyone who makes the world better with passion, courage, imagination
Which movie would i recommend to see once in a lifetime?
“Melancholia” by Lars von Trier
“Drowning by numbers” by Peter Greenaway
“Women without men” (Zanan-e bedun-e mardan) by Shirin Neshat
What role plays art in my life and work?
It is necessary for my inner balance
Who is my greatest fan, sponsor, partner in crime?
My family, who helps me and shares my artistic life: my husband Guido Geerts is a great expert in photographic technique and lighting, my daughter Flora Geerts is the protagonist of most of my works.
My gallerist, Clelia Belgrado (VisionQuesT 4rosso contemporary photography – Genoa) who supports and promotes my work with patience and tenacity.
Whom would I like to work with in 2019?
I’d like to start collaborations with art places (galleries/foundations/museums) in the Netherlands
Which people in my profession would i love to meet in 2019?
Shirin Neshat and Carla van de Puttelaar
What project, in 2019, am I looking forward to work on?
The project of a photographic book on the tour of my exhibition Re-velation inside the Diocesan Museums. Although an anthropological work, Re-velation was perceived by the Diocesan Museums as an opportunity to open up to the urgencies of the contemporary and to reflect on the themes suggested by the exhibition.
Where can you see me or my work?
www.visionquest.it/index.php/2017/06/05/carla-iacono/
http://www.fotologie.it/iacono.html
Books:
http://gentedifotografia.it/it/libri/carla-iacono-fairy-glaze-and-other-stories-978-88-95388-23-6
https://www.fiorinaedizioni.com/categoria-prodotto/leporelli/
https://www.amazon.it/Linfinito-Alla-luna-Odi-Melisso-Giacomo-Leopardi/dp/8890599677
Next solo exhibitions:
Re-velation – Museo Diocesano Caltanissetta , Sicily, Italy (27 Ottobre 2018 – 27 Gennaio 2019)
Re-velation – Museo Diocesano Catania , Sicily, Italy (from February 2019)
Melancholia – VisionQuesT 4rosso contemporary photography, Genoa (from February 2019)
What do the words “Passion Never Retires” mean to me?
In every activity, passion takes away most of the difficulty.
(Erasmus of Rotterdam)
Which creative heroines should Peter invite to tell their story?
Cinzia Battagliola, artist
How can you contact me?
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/carla.iacono.35
E-mail: