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A certain feeling of precariousness

The existence of men and things is afflicted, or perhaps blessed, with a high degree of precariousness; life itself is change, if only because it goes through different stages, and is nevertheless finite.

No matter how hard we try to achieve stability and security, often with apparent success, in the end we still remain the ‘Animula vagula blandula’ in the face of the impermanence of being and the whim of fortune.

Personally, I have always been convinced of this, but not particularly distressed, I like to think of this uncertainty as a sum of paradoxical events whose unfolding I follow with curiosity.
With this spirit, and a certain dose of superstition, I have collected and put together this selection of different images, taken in different times and places, but united by the attempt to convey a certain sense of uncertainty without over-dramatising.

There is the precariousness of a nighttime wait or that of a sulphurous accordion player, the soaring of a seagull or a bucket that seems precariously leaning on a broom, someone making sand sculptures for passers-by and glaring at the photographer, or someone sleeping on a bench and only the soles of his jogging shoes can be seen like the feet of a poor Christ.

I wanted to use nine light-hearted images to arrive light-heartedly at the only stability we can reach: the last one.

Waiting for the night bus. Rome, Via Principe Eugenio, February 21th 2023.
Tempting demon, for the time of a song. Rome, Borgo Pio, September 27th 2022.
Precarious sleep, homage to Mantegna. Rome, Via dei Corridori, October 10th 2022.
Momentary art: scolding glances. Rome, Piazza di S. Lorenzo in Lucina, March 16th 2023.
Stationary instability. Melfi (PZ), Via Normanni, April 24th 2023.
A precarious balance. Rome, Via Terenzio, May 15th 2023.
Tribute to Kudelka: light, stones and clouds. Selinunte (TP) Archaeological site, August 19th 2022.
Unstable immobility. Rome, Piazza del Popolo, October 26th 2022.
The instant of take-off. Roma, Lungotevere Castello, May 4th 2023.
Ultimate stability. Rome, Verano monumental cemetery, September 19th 2022.

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Pietro Coppa

Nato e vissuto a Roma, fotografo per antica passione.

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2 Comments

  1. There’s truth in your photos as well as in you titles: a very special and deep point of view of reality that surrounds us but we are unable to see and understand; you really have the gift to catch and explain us the world with a philosophic, laical and sincere soul

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