GHANA PORTRAITS

“One of the great challenges of photography carried out in diverse cultural contexts, like the present series of images, created during an artistic residency in July 2013 in a rural village in the Ashanti region of Ghana with the support of the NKA Foundation, is ensuring that the result is not merely anthropological—or purely aesthetic—but that it reproduces the atmosphere experienced without distorting the perception of the world it captures.

Mirela Fiorese does not fall into this trap. Most of her representations succeed in transmitting the visual impressions of the community she visited. In this regard, special attention is drawn to the images of people seated amidst the earth, surrounded by an environment where green predominates. The atmosphere evokes, for instance, the paintings of Almeida Junior depicting the rural universe of São Paulo.

It is clear that the realities portrayed are distinct, but the focus here is much less on what is seen and much more on how it is shown. There is a strong connection between the approach to the subject matter and the relationship with the surrounding environment. Mirela succeeds in offering a portrait of Ghana through her unique lens of contemplation.

There is an ambiance conveyed through the compositions, the patterns of the women’s clothes, and the gazes of those photographed. It feels as though the post-African community reaches out to the viewers of these images. We are transported into a greater sense of humanity as we delve into this subject matter, gradually drawing closer through a serene and delicate gaze.”

– Oscar D’Ambrosio