Parallel Lines: Claudio Composti
© Ilaria Abbiento “Καρδια”
Federica Belli: The language of photography is still among the most contemporary ones, notwithstanding the diffusion of digital art and AR. Which factors make photography such a relevant medium in our time?
Claudio Composti: Photography is the most contemporary tool to express feelings and turn them into something universal. Since the beginning of photography in the middle of the nineteenth century – when Kodak in 1888 invented the ready-to-use camera and advertised it as you press the shutter, we do the rest – photography has made personal expression accessible. The problem today lies in the sharing of photography. A wonderful installation by Erik Kessels (now on show at C/O Berlin, e.d.) shows the huge mountain of images published on Flickr in just 24 hours, and the awareness that those are just a portion of all the images we consume everyday makes us conscious of the visual storm we are in.
F.B. In the era of social media, your role of curator often coincides with that of talent scout as well, meaning that you attempt to recognise an artist among a sea of creatives. How do you draw the line between a product of creativity and a work of art?
C.C. When working with creativity one can easily come to think of being an artist. Just inventing something beautiful, the right sentence and image that work in the moment, does not make anyone an artist. Today the chance for sharing anything one creates is impressive, yet it generates an excess of supply that forgoes the filters of a professional opinion. In such an ocean of pictures, the distinction between product of creativity and work of art runs on a very thin line. Being able to cook a wonderful risotto would not make anyone a chef, yet publishing our own work on social media seems to be sufficient to define artists. And the lack of a common code in the language of photography does not help: anyone looking at an image might give a different interpretation. In the moment in which one decides to consider his photograph as important enough to be shown outside his private space and used as means of communication towards someone else, he declares something. And one has to control the message being communicated, which can be done only through considering each image as a word making up a sentence. We talk about reading images, and the terms are not casual. We read photographs just as we read books: grammar rules apply in similar ways. In the editing process, it is necessary to apply a visual grammar and be conscious about the aim and message behind a series.
© Alexandra Lethbridge, “The Archive of Gesture”
F.B. Early on, photographers tend to produce high volumes of disordered work, neglecting the editing process. Yet, this phase can completely revolutionise a series of photographs. In the editing of a work you consider each single photograph as a word contributing to the construction of a sentence: do you place more importance on choosing the strongest images or on building a sentence that might omit great photographs in order to make better sense?
C.C. Consider having a wall of 5 meters to show your story through three images: the first point is choosing a title which enables an initial intuition about the story which is about to be shown. Then, by working on archetypes and innate meanings, conscience is awakened and enticed by the work even when the meaning is not clear: unaware spectators notice the use of hidden grammar as well. And grammar is not concerned with the meaning of the story, it regards not what you are declaring but rather how. It is a universal technique to tell any story with clarity. A great story makes a masterful use of grammar while leaving the space for watchers to interpret meaning through his own experience and inner world, to start an inner movie from stills. Only then, a body or a face can come to represent a lover, a presence. Only then a photograph becomes an image and a photographer becomes an author. Three images in the right sequence can be extremely powerful and influence an observer in unexpected ways.
F.B. After all, conjunctions and adverbs are fundamental just as much as conceptual nouns in the construction of a sentence. While a Curator would often place higher importance on the sequence of a story, thus including photographs which do not stand for themselves but strengthen the series, a Gallerist might pick only the strongest works of an artist in order to maximise sales. Being both Curator and Gallerist, how do you balance the two approaches?
C.C. The sale of works is fundamental for artists to keep producing and for galleries to exist, yet the approach of a Gallerist as I have come to see it has to be intellectual before anything else. And I admit that is more of a curatorial approach. I grew in my father’s gallery, in those analogue times that breathed art in a different way. I cannot betray such profound and honest dedication to art. The challenge is just to make it contemporary. And though your distinction among the two figures is completely accurate, in my case these roles have come to coincide. The Gallerist focused on sales can rather be called Merchant or Art Dealer, his point is to satisfy the market rather than fund talent. Such approach reduces the risk for collectors and the challenges linked to the growth of the artist. The field I intend to work in, opposite, is the discovery and promotion of talent. The role becomes that of a trainer, first and foremost: once I find the talent, I plan its training towards a certain quality level and build a team that supports its growth. It’s way more stimulating.
© Celine Croze
F.B. And there is a demand for such traineeship, a need for such guidance. It is an incredibly intricate industry to navigate for photographers starting out. Yet in our times, some professional roles are often bypassed: through social media, each photographer automatically becomes her own Editor, while through NFTs one can act as her own Gallerist. Which are the hidden risks and pitfalls of such fluidity for emerging photographers?
C.C. This question is particularly tough to answer. For instance, the NFT market is impossible to understand when approached with those same expectations as the one my father employed with the tools of the analogue era. In the blink of an eye, the whole market has been revolutionised: what we call the system of art, made by the chain of Artist, Curator, Gallerist, Collector, Museum, used to constitute a sort of virtual circle. And now it has been broken, one single person does it all. In a way, such freedom represents a wonderful opportunity. Unavoidably, however, there is a terrifying loss in terms of quality control: creativity can easily be expressed through photography, and I guarantee any person out there can create wonderful images sooner or later. However, the obsession of a theme, the continuity of living and dying with the power of this language is not even comparable to taking photographs in one’s free time. And it is where all the value lies. We work with the invisible, with the aura, and the act of giving a value to a photograph is way more complex than it might appear. Collecting, for instance, is the act of paying for something that creates an emotion. It is the breaking of a taboo according to which one can spend huge amounts of money for whatever, but only as long as it is useful. Opposite, according to the consumeristic approach, even small amounts of money are considered to be wasted if spent on art. Spending money on emotions is a luxury in terms of making a freedom statement as well, and such courage has to be respected. In this passage between the old and the new era, having the freedom to promote one’s own work and reach collectors does not automatically make the work valuable. It just generates a storm, and during storms we do whatever possible in order to survive, we look for a safe guidance. Thus, facing an excess of chaotic supply, collectors turn once again to reliable artists, well aware that relying on the advice of experienced advisors and galleries is fundamental to navigate the chaos.
F.B. And yet, without the testimony of experienced professionals, it’s easy to underestimate such step and attempt to bypass guidance.
C.C. Definitely, a creative might get an immediate enthusiastic response from the market. And it is the most delicate and risky moment in the making or breaking of a young artist. The blue chip gallery promises large amounts of money to create what sells yet, exchanging the artist’s freedom for a premature gallery representation is almost like selling one’s soul to the devil. The artist might find himself in the position of having to produce work that is not in line with his true calling, and in the long term such frustration destroys both the enthusiasm and the honesty of creation. There is always a trade-off. It is very tough to find the strength to say no to shiny proposals and keep pushing, but the stars that shine the brightest burn in the blink of an eye. The point is surviving to a long journey.
F.B. There are so many factors at play, including timing. The way towards the established market is always enticing and fascinating, even for the ones who declare to know where they stand. But the risk is to find ourselves controlling the rudder of a boat we don’t have the experience to control yet.
C.C. Every market has its mermaids. And those who are conscious enough to realise they are being seduced have to find the strength to pause and reflect on the road they want to take. A fundamental part of growth is failure, yet some strategic errors can destroy a promising career. And the way to avoid them, at times, is to have the guidance and method only experience can give. Mentorship is often underrated, in times in which both success and failure occur faster and in more extreme ways.
© Constantinos Chiorri
Claudio Composti is the Curator and Art Director behind the Milanese gallery MC2, focused on the representation of young photographers. Defining himself as missed photographer, he uses his eye to recognise young talented photographers and guide them through their development. He has specialised in the field of post-photography, offering Portfolio Reviews at Les Rencontres d’Arles and other photography festivals in order to scout talents he then introduces in the industry and connects with the right gallerists and curators. In addition to a collaboration with Leica Akademie, he holds a Masterclass in photography at Raffles Milan.
