Supernatural - by Irene Alison & Paolo Cagnacci (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

The only comprehensive English-language book on the history of steeped green-leaf tea called sencha, its origins in China, its significant influence on Japanese culture, and its enduring popularity worldwide.

"The dialogue between natural and artificial but also between the earthly dimension and the spiritual, seen through the eyes of photographers who have examined places, conflicts and paradoxes that cross the contemporary world, reflecting on the complex position that humans occupy on the planet."

The idea for SuperNatural - imagined by Irene Alison and Paolo Cagnacci as a reflection that cuts across contemporary life including our relationship with space as much as the way in which we project ourselves in time, before a horizon that grows even more uncertain, between epidemics and climate crisis - is expressed in this cycle of exhibitions featuring national and international authors with photographs and videos that, though firmly anchored in reality, generate the awe of science fiction. The great conflicts of the Anthropocene are explored visually and symbolically, articulating a path in search of human nature in relation to the mark and imprint that humans leave on the earth: from the creative recycling of waste, to the denial of the artificial dimension in favour of a return to the origins, to the need for transcendence and spirituality inherent in human nature at any latitude and in any age.

On the screens of Rifugio Digitale, Firenze, the pictures open windows and other worlds, where they give concrete shape to hope, inviting the viewer to acquire critical awareness and attempt a change of pace, in search of a new balance. The cycle includes works by photographers Luca Locatelli, Charlotte Dumas, Matthieu Gafsou, Piero Percoco, Hayley Eichenbaum, Maria Lax and Petrina Hicks.

About the Author

The professional journalist and photo-consultant, Irene Alison, was born in Naples in 1977. She is creative director of the photographic project and consulting studio, DER*LAB, and teaches at the European Design Institute (IED) in Rome, in addition to collaborating as a tutor and consultant with some of the most important Italian schools of photography (Isfci, Rufa, Scuola Romana di Fotografia in Rome and Fondazione Studio Marangoni in Florence, among others). As an editor, she has worked for the Manifesto and D, La Repubblica delle Donne. She has published two essays of photographic research, My generation (Postcart, 2012) and iRevolution (Postcart, 2014) and, in 2022, the American publisher Yoffy Press printed "Holding Time", a book written with the photographer Catherine Panebianco, for which Irene authored the texts. In 2022 Postcart has published her essay, Muse col Muso (Muses with Muzzles, imaginary animals in contemporary photography). Professional photographer and teacher of photography, Paolo Cagnacci was born in Florence in 1971. He studies photography at the Studio Marangoni Foundation, where he currently teachers portrait photography and lighting techniques. He has also taught at the European Design Institute of Florence. His pictures have been published in magazines like: D la Repubblica, Corriere della Sera, La Repubblica, La Stampa, Sette, SportWeek, L'Espresso, Pagina99, Specchio, Lei, Donna Moderna, Famiglia Cristiana, Corriere della Sera-La Lettura. He has produced photographic and video projects for the Region of Tuscany, the Festival of Creativity, the People's Festival, Balkan Observatory, the Michelucci Foundation, Tempo Reale, Unicoop Firenze, the City of Florence, Telecom Foundation, Mibact, CNA. Laura Andreini is Associate Professor of Architectural and Urban Composition at the Faculty of Architecture, University of Florence. She combines her design and teaching activities with an intense work of in-depth study and critical reflection, participating in editorial committees of journals, publishing essays and writings and participating as a speaker at numerous conferences.