Photo by Simone Galli
Sofia Podestà (1991) is a photographer based in Rome, Italy. She graduated at the Art History faculty of the University of Roma Tre in 2018, with a thesis on the photography of Luigi Ghirri, Guido Guidi and Vittore Fossati. She studied photography through the filter of Art History to have a more cross-sectional vision.
In 2018 she was selected to attend the Summer School by SISF and the Advanced training at MAXXI museum in Rome.
She received in 2019 the award GIOVANI CREATIVI, for the category of photography, as one of the best twelve Italian creative talents under 30. In 2021, she was selected by the Central Institute for Cataloguing and Documentation and Italian Ministry of Culture to document the cultural heritage of Southern Italy, as part of the PON (Piano Operativo Nazionale) project Itinerari Digitali.
Her images are a personal collection of places that are represented like objects in a catalogue or album: frontal and centred as much as possible, always at a certain distance and without being distorted by false perspectives. But this mapping or cataloguing of the landscape is only apparently aseptic: it is rather a proposal to attempt to look at anonymous places or, on the contrary, known realities with an affective gaze, which leaves the spirit of the place intact, stripping it of what is superfluous.
She is represented in Rome by Von Buren Contemporary art gallery.
STUDIES
2018 Advanced training at MAXXI museum
2018 Summer School Sisf in Pieve Tesino, Trento
2018 Workshop // Vittore Fossati at Officine Fotografiche with ICCD, Rome
2018 MA in Models and languages of Contemporary Photography, Università di Roma Tre, Rome
2016 Internship at MACRO Museum, Rome
2015 BA in Contemporary Art - Università La Sapienza, Rome
PERSONAL EXHIBITIONS
2022 Kairos • Thirthyone Design Management, Rome
2022 Kairos • Von Buren Contemporary, Rome
2019 DESERTICA, curated by Tayisiya Libokhorska • Sinestetica, Rome.
2018 Emotional landscapes • Medina Gallery, Rome.
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2024 Once upon a time • Von Buren Contemporary • Rome,Italy
2024 Happening Happenstance • Ephemere space • Tokyo, Japan
2023 The Grand Tour • VonBuren Contemporary, Rome, Italy - on show until January 31
2023 Romagna tin bota • Galleria comunale Ex Peschiera, Cesena, Italy
2023 Niente in particolare. Beyond the Landscape: Women and. Contemporary Photography in Italy, curated by Agnese Purgatorio • Fann wa Chai gallery, Amman, Jordan
2021 ImagiNation Paris • ParisPhoto off, Joseph Turenne Gallery, Paris, France
2021 Niente in particolare • Italian Embassy, Amman, Jordan
2020 Segni Particolari • Museo Civico di Castel Nuovo - Maschio Angioino, Naples, Italy
2020 Segni Particolari • Roma Smistamento, Rome, Italy
2020 Group show curated by Michele von Büren • RvB Arts, Rome
2019 Mirabilia • Sinestetica, Rome.
2019 GIOVANI CREATIVI • Palazzo Massimo, Rome.
2018 Medina fotografia • Medina Gallery, Rome.
2016 The Adventure Handbook Photo Exhibition • Goodspace Gallery, Sydney.
2016 The Adventure Handbook Photo Exhibition • RVCA Gallery, Melbourne.
COMMISSIONS
2021-2022 Progetto PON "Itinerari digitali" a project of ICCD (Central Institute for Cataloguing and Documentation)and MiC (Italian Ministry of Culture) to document the cultural heritage of Southern Italy.
AWARDS
2020 PhC Capalbiofotografia International Photography Festival • Special Mention
2019 Giovani Creativi • Best Italian talents under 30
2018 Premio Medina Fotografia
COLLECTIONS
ICCD - Istituto Centrale per il Catalogo e la Documentazione
MiC - Ministero della Cultura
Private collections
LECTURES
2021 Find your way in landscape photography, webinar at Daisie
2019 Incontro e confronto tra creativi, Talk at Palazzo Massimo in Rome, promoted by Giovani Creativi
2019 Host at Premio Ciack #InLombardia by Regione Lombardia at Belvedere di Palazzo Lombardia, Milano
2019 Lo sguardo di Luigi Ghirri, lecture at Sinestetica , Rome
2018 Elementi della natura nelle fotografie di Fossati, Ghirri e Guidi | Storia della fotografia - La ricerca junior in Italia, Terzo seminario nazionale, Università degli Studi di Firenze, curated by Prof. A. Frongia and Prof. T. Serena, promoted by SISF
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
2024 - Urbanautica Institute - Sentinelle Solitarie
2023 - Sguardi Contemporanei 23 - Fotografia dell'Architettura
2023 - Il Giornale dell'Arte
2023 - Il Giornale dell'Architettura
2022 - Sguardi Contemporanei 22 - Fotografia dell'Architettura
2022 - Broad Magazine
2021 - ArtDoc Magazine and here the full interview
2021 - The Pupil Sphere
2020 - ClickMagazine
2019 - The Walkman
2019 - Objects.
2013- 2019 - Photovogue
2018 - Fisheye Magazine
2018 - Landscape Stories
2018 - Ignant
2018 - Artwort
2018 - The Index
2018 - Pellicola Magazine
2018 - Vulgaris Magazine
2018 - North Magazine
2017 - Ignant - Enrosadira
2017 - Pellicola Magazine - Lofoten
2017 - Wild Dogs in Paris
2017 - Frizzi Frizzi
2017 - F-Stop Magazine
2016 - If You Leave Showcase 2016 - Shortlisted
2016 - The Adventure Hand Book
2016 - Art Upon
2016 - The creators project
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
2024 - Urbanautica Institute - Sentinelle Solitarie
2023 - Sguardi Contemporanei 23 - Fotografia dell'Architettura
2023 - Il Giornale dell'Arte
2023 - Il Giornale dell'Architettura
2022 - Sguardi Contemporanei - 10 fotografi x 10 fotografie - Fotografia dell'Architettura
2022 - Broad Magazine
2021 - ArtDoc Magazine and here the full interview
2021 - The Pupil Sphere
2020 - ClickMagazine
2019 - The Walkman
2019 - Objects.
2013- 2019 - Photovogue
2018 - Fisheye Magazine
2018 - Landscape Stories
2018 - Ignant
2018 - Artwort
2018 - The Index
2018 - Pellicola Magazine
2018 - Vulgaris Magazine
2018 - North Magazine
2017 - Ignant - Enrosadira
2017 - Pellicola Magazine - Lofoten
2017 - Wild Dogs in Paris
2017 - Frizzi Frizzi
2017 - F-Stop Magazine
2016 - If You Leave Showcase 2016 - Shortlisted
2016 - The Adventure Hand Book
2016 - Art Upon
2016 - The creators project
INTERVIEWS
2023 - Sguardi Contemporanei - Fotografia dell'Architettura - Sentinelle solitarie: Le case cantoniere
2022 - Sguardi Contemporanei - Fotografia dell'Architettura - Livata
2020 - Ombra Magazine
2019 - Giovani Creativi 2019
2018 - The Glitch
2017 - Culturamas
CATALOGS / PAPER
2022 - Sguardi Contemporanei - Fotografia dell'Architettura
2020 - Roma Segni Particolari - Catagolo mostra - Roma Smistamento & TWM Factory
2020 - Ombra Magazine
2019 - Giovani Creativi - Catalogo - Roma Smistamento & TWM Factory
2019 - The Bestselected Book vol.II
2018 - The Bestselected Book vol.I
INTERVIEWS
2023 - Sguardi Contemporanei - Fotografia dell'Architettura - Sentinelle solitarie: Le case cantoniere
2022 - Sguardi Contemporanei - Fotografia dell'Architettura - Livata
2020 - Ombra Magazine
2019 - Giovani Creativi 2019
2018 - The Glitch
2017 - Culturamas
CATALOGS / PAPER
2022 - Sguardi Contemporanei - Fotografia dell'Architettura
2020 - Roma Segni Particolari - Catagolo mostra - Roma Smistamento & TWM Factory
2020 - Ombra Magazine
2019 - Giovani Creativi - Catalogo - Roma Smistamento & TWM Factory
2019 - The Bestselected Book vol.II
2018 - The Bestselected Book vol.I