HIGH NOON

TINA COSMAI

// Tina is an Italian artist who uses photography to create metaphysical scenarios, reflecting on the relationship between human and landscape in a post-human condition. We present her photo art project “Meriggio” (noon), with abstractions of photography from a small Ligurian town.

Tina lives in Liguria, in the province of Genoa. As a freelance journalist, she has worked with national and international newspapers and magazines, dealing with the topics of culture and cultural heritage. She is also a published novelist and poet. In Genoa she conceived and curated the literary event Genovainedita Cultura (2006 – 2013). She has also organised photographic exhibitions and cultural events in various sites around the city.

For some years now she has devoted herself to photography, focusing on the surreal and metaphysical aspects of the environment and thought. Her photos have been published in photo magazines such as Il Fotografo, L’Oeil de la Photographie , Le Litteraire, GlamourAffair.

“Italy, and the spring, and frist love all together should suffice to make the gloomiest person happy. ”

Bertrand Russell

What draws you to the arts?

“Creating is life for me. I like all art, from classical to contemporary. I like it in all its forms: photography, painting, cinema, sculpture, architecture. For humans, art is the only possibility of being free, which does not mean being happy, but being able to express their thoughts and also their pain. Art overcomes stereotypes, allowing us to search for beauty in every form, even in something ugly.”

What do you like best about photo art such as the images you have shared with us?

“I liked the colours of Liguria: those yellows and reds. Beautiful. I liked the alleys and the ways out. And the light. In Liguria there is a wonderful light that emphasises the pastel colours of the landscape and the towns.“

The artwork we are presenting is called “meriggio” (noon in Italian) because Tina took the photos when the sun is at its zenith so that there are clear and precise shadows. Meriggio is a profound thought on human loneliness, on the loss of something important, on the inner emptiness expressed through a ghost town. The scene is dominated by a chromatic minimalism that purifies the image, eradicating details and particulars, sometimes recovered in an alienating way.

“I photographed a beautiful village in Liguria: Varese Ligure. I took the pictures in August, with a strong sun. The light filtered through arches and narrow alleys, creating mellow shadows that made me think of the colours of the artist Mario Sironi,” she says. In post-processing Tina digitally removed windows, electric cables, broken doors, bringing back the original colours of the village and, between the arches, she painted the sky using virtual brushes in her editing software. “I wanted there to be a sense of freedom and dismay. Feelings that are current in this post-modern world.”

Some images are cropped for layout. Click on the photos to see a larger image with its title.