The exhibition dedicated to Luigi Ghirri, Polaroid ‘79 – ‘83, currently at Centro Pecci in Prato, offers an unprecedented overview of his artistic production, revealing an intimate and emotional dimension. The complete selection of photographs, in both small and large formats, builds a bridge between past and present, where memory comes alive in relation to the observer.
Luigi Ghirri, “Modena”, 1979, Polaroid, 7,3 × 9,5 cm, courtesy Heirs of Luigi Ghirri
This exhibition is a rare opportunity to approach one of the masters of Italian photography from the late twentieth century with a free gaze, focused on the substance of his work: snapshots of moving figures, lived spaces, moments contained in the time of a single shot. It is a direct encounter, reading Ghirri through his lens, at the moment when the image becomes language. Observing these fragments of perspective, one perceives that the artist composed a familiar lexicon of subjects and landscapes, offering the camera the ability to capture an inner experience. Familiarity is not mere recognition: it is remembrance, root, evocation. In the 8×8 Polaroids, the protagonists of the depicted life are discrete units that allow the eye to find place, measure and rhythm.
Luigi Ghirri, “Roma”, 1979, Polaroid, 8 × 8 cm, courtesy Thomas Dane Gallery, London and Naples
Curator Chiara Agradi emphasizes that in 1979 Ghirri was a fully formed artist and one of the few Italians invited by Polaroid to experiment with the large 50×60 cm format using the Polaroid 20×24 Instant Land Camera. In those years, the objects he chose constituted the domestic dimension of his study tools. Every element brought during preparation was not merely an object, but a fragment of his semantic neologism of the image. The “Modena” series evokes the magnification of a binocular or a macro effect, revealing the essential in snapshots of lived moments. Ghirri’s work conveys this depth with extreme simplicity. As curator Stefano Collicelli Cagol points out, Ghirri built community through art. His photography is therefore a gesture of connection, imposing no vision and emphasizing no role, as it shares the same point of observation. In the exhibition spaces, visitors can establish a personal connection with the times and environments depicted.
Luigi Ghirri, “Amsterdam”, 1981, Polaroid, 60 × 80 cm, courtesy Heirs of Luigi Ghirri
The photographs, in the installation curated by Ibrahim Kombarji, guide the viewer on a sentimental journey: the natural fiber offers an anchor for the gaze and the vertical carpet holds the magnetic force of the works. Thus, Ghirri, seemingly in the background, emerges precisely through his emotional narrative. From a conversation with Luigi Ghirri’s daughter, Adele, an essential aspect of his thinking emerges, oriented toward the quality of art’s experience. Adele recalls how important the white space between images was to allow contemplation. This perspective, distant from contemporary frenzy, is reflected in Ghirri’s writings, where attention to a clean and airy display is evident, with the white mat becoming essential to highlight what the image includes and excludes. Within this dynamism, even in the compactness of the lines, the large Polaroids converse with tradition: the echo of Antonello da Messina’s Annunciata, the oblique score and references to Cubism. From representing multiple points of view to the grid of subdivided details. Here, a vintage effect prevails, with muted colors and an atmosphere reminiscent of an old postcard. The smaller Polaroids engage on a different plane of contemporary daily life. In these formats, one finds the effect of reduced light dispersion, resembling the clarity of air after rain.
Luigi Ghirri, “Amsterdam”, 1980, Polaroid, 52.3 × 59.2 cm, private collection, Novara, courtesy Heirs of Luigi Ghirri
The complete body of work reveals the value of Luigi Ghirri’s gaze in the concreteness of the subjects and the Polaroid itself, the medium accompanying him during this exploration phase. Each shot shows a clear emotional component, supported by delicate colors and attention to themes close to twentieth-century life. Ghirri ultimately appears as a farsighted observer of his time. For him, the camera was a profoundly human device, capable not only of reconnecting each viewer to their own experiences, but also of revealing their essential meaning.
Chantal Gisi
Info:
Luigi Ghirri. Polaroid ’79 – ’83
22/11/2025 – 10/06/2026
Centro per l’arte contemporanea Luigi Pecci
Viale della Repubblica 277, Prato
www.centropecci.it
Chantal Gisi is a writer and translator, holding a Master’s degree in Modern European and American Languages and Literatures from Florence. For Juliet, she explores the connections between art, literature, and history, with a keen awareness of the present.
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