Evanescent, ephemeral. These are two words that, in their written presence, as well as in their oral significance, allude to something arduous to catch. They are both adjectives with a strong onomatopoetic value - with their “sc” and “ph” sounds, they remind us of the sounds of the leaves in the wind, or the flow of a stream. Just to mention some.
Fixing in a film and sharply representing something that is living, moving and is in constant change is difficult, where not impossible. In other words, it is a challenge between the artist and the chosen subject.
Exactly like the one occurring at the exhibition “The Ephemeral and the Evanescence Perception” arranged at the Spazio Millepiani in Rome, showing a wide range of photos, videos and digital works from all over the world. Here, the collective representation of something not perceptible with the senses and in constant evolution mirrors what surrounds us day by day.
Suddenly, many small bits of micro-universes come together until they represent the here and now. Not yesterday, not tomorrow. Now.
In this self-resolving chaos, many artists are turning their interest towards the natural element - that, by definition, is the perceptible macrocosm existing all around us. The light, the colour palette, the framing and the focus are essential reference points to fully understand the spirit of the exhibition. The use of a strong light, of an almost blinding illumination exalting the chromatic contrasts - or the black and white - tends to exacerbate the subject. Subject that, in its turn, heads towards the ineffable, getting lost in itself to the point of becoming abstract - a geometric shape, organic structures, lines, dots… in other words, creatures from another world.

In this context, the light becomes a part of the art pieces not just as an ephemeral subject, but also as a photographic impression technique. At this point, my thoughts go to the artistic experimentations accomplished at the beginning of the 20th century by artists such as Man Ray with his Rayographs. And this shift is able to draw a line between the past and the present in a space-time continuum.
In addition to this, the water is also a common feature in the art pieces shown within the exhibition. This choice is so popular not only because of the physical properties of these elements, but also for their symbolic values, embodying the life-cycle (the Greek motto “panta rei”). In fact, while the light symbolises the divine spirit, the water is often associated with the shifting from one dimension into another - from materiality to spirituality. And they are often portrayed through blurred outlines as they suggest the world is not just black or white, life or death, light and dark, but everything in between. It is simultaneously beginning and end, a never ending cycle going on and on. And on.