In origin it was marble.
 This project talks about an environmental transformation in the Apuan Alps of Tuscany, Italy. 
A fascinating place due to its geological, botanical and landscape characteristics also the site where the famous, white Carrara marble is extracted.


Every year, approximately five million tons of the mountain are removed via its quarries, but only a minimal amount for ornamental use. In fact, 2/3 of the extracted marble is made up of fragments, mostly employed in the production of calcium carbonate. This material is widely used in industry, due to its unique properties and relatively low cost. It can be found in bleached paper, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, foods, toothpaste, paints, glues, detergents, plastics, rubber, glass, ceramics…to name just a few.

In short, a laundry list of the products that we use daily.
But every day, as well, the environmental impact increases. The landscape is undergoing irreversible changes. An appropriate response would be to take the calcium carbonate from elsewhere or perhaps to use other substances as substitutes. But no, we continue to extract and the mountains continue to shrivel.
Thus, this mountain is a symbol of the environmental issues that are critical for our country (and our world). We need long-term strategies, oriented towards sustainable activities, in order to start a different trend. Otherwise the problem will be resolved only when the mountain has been completely erased.

 


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About the Artist
I was born in Prato, Tuscany, Italy in 1965 and still live there.
I am enthusiastic about hiking and excursions and I imagine my photographic path as being a new journey on foot: slow, full of thoughtfulness and curiosities with long stops and detours.

A previous work experience in digital graphics introduced me, self taught, to the study of images and visual communications.
My first serious approach to photography immediately blossomed into commitment and studies, in 2012.
My practice has focused to social and environmental problems, I’m very attracted to the study of landscape and the man-made changes which leave their signs, having critical impact on natural resources.

I don’t “always have my camera with me”, I believe that photography cannot be auto referenced: a piloted approach with a project in mind, must be the method for gathering the fruits of an idea, a place and encounters.
My journey has just begun.

 

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