Sponda bergamasca vista da Esmate (2023) Photography by Graziano Alghisi

Work forming part of a photographic project on Lake Iseo. I leave the presentation of the book that collects all the works in the description.

presentation

65, 186, 251.

No, they're not freaking out. The sequence of figures present here is not accidental, but represents, respectively, the surface, the altitude and the depth of one of the most suggestive lakes in Italy.
Affectionately called by the Lombards Lac d'Izé or Sebìn, Lake Iseo is a body of water teeming with life, a place made up of encounters, experiences and opportunities.
Therefore, defining it in a few words would be simplistic, if not downright offensive, also considering the millenary history it carries on its shoulders.
After all, Lac d'Izé has its origins in very ancient times, when glaciers reigned over a large part of the Earth. And the Sebino owes its origin to them.
It was really the ice that dug out a dwelling among the rocks of the Pre-Alps, a basin in the shape of a serpentine, sinuous and thin, with the exception of its central part: there, in fact, an enlargement hosts three islands, Monte Isola, Loreto and San Paolo , capable of standing between the water as suspension points.
Since its inception, year after year, the lake has always been there, wedged between what are now the provinces of Bergamo and Brescia, a silent witness to a thousand events. Important pages of history have intertwined in its vicinity and over the centuries the Serbino has attracted many peoples, it has attracted people from the East and the West, from the North as well as from the South.
The first evidence of man dates back to the Paleolithic, while we have to wait for the Iron Age to see unequivocal signs of the presence of the Camuni in the area. However, they weren't the only ones to populate these territories.
Even the Etruscans went as far as the Alps and got to know Sebino, as did the Romans after them. Moreover, after the fall of the Roman Empire, the Lombards arrived from the east, while Charlemagne peeped out from the west. And yet Federico Barbarossa as well as the Republic of Venice have taken root around the shores of the lake. Not to mention a succession of conflicts, from bitter disputes between Guelphs and Ghibellines to battles for the unification of Italy, which have affected the region.
Fortunately, the conflicts represent only a small part of the events that have affected the area.
Thanks to its beauty, and perhaps to its strategic position, as a bridge between mountains and plains, over the centuries Lake Iseo has also been able to capture the interest of men of art and science. From
painters such as Romanino to Francesco Hayez, from Antonio Canova to Leonardo da Vinci, many have stopped here in the course of their lives, not to mention native visitors from far more distant lands, who have allowed themselves long stays on the shores of Lake Serbino. This is the case, for example, of Friedrich Chopin.
The great composer spent years along the banks of the Sebino and, although some attribute his stay to the writer Amantine Dupin, the lake also undoubtedly influenced his choice. Almost like the "circe sorceress" of the situation, the Lac d'Izé enchanted the musician, kept him close to it, inspiring him to compose sonatas and nocturnes; moreover, who knows how many times the discreet and silent waters of the lake have cradled her thoughts and been the soundtrack of her stormy love story...
The beauty and tranquility of the place, therefore, are undeniable. In addition, different climates and landscapes also contribute to making it so special, sometimes almost antithetical, which coexist along the shores of the lake giving dynamism, creating a unique combination in the world.
The variety of animal species that inhabit the woods and fields in the area is immense while under water trout, eels, perch and many others ripple the surface with their fins until they swim. Even the plant kingdom is no less: olive trees and vines, fruit trees, firs, larches and chestnuts find themselves living together around the same place. It seems paradoxical but, closing your eyes in the middle of the wood, in some moments you might even be able to smell the scent of Franciacorta.
Even today there is life and movement around there and, although after the unification of our country the lake has no longer been the backdrop for particularly famous battles, two kingdoms, the animal and the vegetable, have been fighting tirelessly, and for who knows how long, one next to each other to carve out a suitable space for them.
If only men fought with the same tenacity...
While plants and animals, despite the difficulties, want to stay close to the lake, the same cannot be said of the people who live nearby. It is as if human beings had given up in the face of the many challenges that living in such a fascinating but at the same time fragile territory entails. These are not simple assumptions, the data confirms it: in fact, there is a galloping demographic decline strongly influenced by a massive depopulation of the areas bordering the lake, and unfortunately there is no trend reversal on the horizon. On some occasions one might even think that the locals are no longer able to see the beauty and all the potential of the area where they were born and raised.
Added to this is a bitter observation: the devaluation of the lake by those who live in the area is not the only threat, on the contrary. Indifference and lack of consideration often go hand in hand with mistreatment, abuse, crazy projects that aim to completely deface the landscape as well as make the lives of those who still struggle to preserve the lake even more tiring.

Concrete columns as tall as fir trees, satellite dishes that touch the sky, neglect, excavations that undermine the stability of the land and deforestation are just some of the crimes committed against the pre-Alpine lake. In addition to this, the lesser notoriety of Serbino compared to nearby lakes, which are better known and frequented, contributes to making it vulnerable, represents a limit in its protection and, consequently, risks undermining its delicate balance.
Therefore, committing to protect the lake against environmental disasters, natural or man-made, is not enough. There is a second, but equally important challenge to face: giving visibility to a lake that is already vulnerable and which otherwise risks being set aside, if not forgotten.
Hence the idea of ​​giving voice to this natural beauty, of highlighting what Lake Iseo is for better or for worse and to awaken our consciences as much as possible. After all, as one of Francisco Goya's best-known works reports, "the sleep of reason generates monsters" (and in our case also building monsters).
The project
Once the decision was made to address the issue as comprehensively as possible, the first question to resolve was how to achieve this. Photography turned out to be the most sensible answer.
It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words and many have been collected here. After all, the topics to be covered would have been far too numerous and articulated and not even an expert pen could do them justice.
Speaking of expert pens, the great writer Isabel Allende comes to our aid. She herself admitted and recognized the greatness of photography by stating how a beautiful photograph was more powerful than written pages and pages, also explaining the reason: according to Allende, in fact, photography is able to tell stories, reveal places, events and d soul. According to her words, simple images do not remain imprinted in a photograph, and you cannot blame her.
Observing some images it is possible to hear the water breaking on the rock, the noise of the boats, the hiss of the wind in front of the trees. Photographs can even smell: some have the typical lake smell of a body of water, others the sweet scent of alpine herbs, still others smell of everyday life, of food, but also of concrete. More effective than many rounds of words, images bring ineffable sensations to our touch.
Therefore, photography could only be the best tool to fully describe the Lach d'Izé.
After that, once the reasons and the most suitable art form to tell the story of Sebino were clarified, the next step was to prepare an action plan, understand what was the best strategy to implement and carry on the project.

After various reflections, in the end the choice fell on black and white. A controversial choice, it is undeniable, but necessary.
Certainly, in the eyes of many, giving up all the shades of color offered by the lake and the surrounding landscape could seem like a gamble, if not downright madness. Yet, there is a reason. After all, as Jean Baudrillard put it, “colour de-dramatizes, black and white is more charged with the senses”.
More than just a provocation, choosing to use black and white in some respects was a challenge. On balance, however, giving up color turned out to be the best decision to better convey the meaning of this story in images.
Without colour, what remains of the lake is its authentic beauty, without frills, without distractions, without other details distracting attention from the immortalized subjects, from the emotional charge of an episode captured by the camera, from the ultimate meaning of a image.
Removing the primacy of color, what remains is the dichotomy par excellence, the contrast between black and white, between two opposing and sometimes almost irreconcilable forces.
Indicators of light and darkness, of totality and complete absence, these two colors (or non-colours) also have a strong symbolic charge since, in some ways, they reflect man's relationship with Lake Iseo. A relationship, the current one, fluctuating, made up of ups and downs, in which one passes from a certain indifference to extreme exploitation, far beyond its possibilities. And yet, as you can see by paying closer attention, a thousand shades of gray pass between black and white, in these photographs as well as in life.
The foundation on which the whole project rests is that whoever browses through this gallery of images does not limit himself to admiring the beauty of nature or being indignant in the face of less idyllic scenes.
The hope on which the whole project is rooted is that each person can see, in the grayscale of each shot, nuances, inspirations, intuitions to be able to do justice to this all-Italian jewel, gem and treasure chest at the same time, to rediscover it , to preserve it, to learn day after day to love it authentically.

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Black And White PhotographyLandscape PhotographyBlack And WhiteDramaticItaly