PICTURE PERFECT

Second Issue (P. 37)

By Daniele Albinger

I met with Giorgio Majno in his beautiful apartment in Via Morosini, about a kilometer from Milan's Gothic Duomo Cathedral. After a delicious dinner with his wife Oddina and his two sons, Francesco and Luca, I asked him about his past, present and his future plans over a glass of wine.

Why interview Giorgio?...You might ask. There are four basic and very valid reasons. To begin with, he is a true gentleman in every respect. He is a great photographer, whom I have a high professional regard for and he is part of an extraordinary family that helped to shape the face of Italian industry and culture. Most importantly, however, is that he is my friend.

I was honored to have the opportunity of sharing his beautiful studio in Milan as I embarked on my career in photography in the late 80’s. Although I now live in Menton, France (a town situated close to the Principality of Monaco), I continue to treasure the lessons he taught me. The studio we shared, is still in a grand palace in the heart of Milan. It is an ex-convent complete with an ancient cloister, in the centre of which, a garden flourishes embracing beautiful colors and emanating the perfect elegance for inducing artistic inspiration. The famous Romanic Saint Ambrose church, built in the fourth century and rebuilt during the twelfth, stands a few hundred feet from Via Cappuccio. It was in this grand palace that Giorgio and his siblings grew up, a legendary atmosphere to be proud of.

Giorgio was born in Milan in 1954, in an upper-middle-class family of industrial tycoons. His maternal grandfather, Guido Ucelli di Nemi, had established an iron rod industry and he founded the Leonardo da Vinci National Museum of Science and Technology in Milan, in 1953. Breaking family tradition, Giorgio elected not to study engineering, but instead enrolled in D.A.M.S. (Discipline of the Arts, Music and Show Business), in Bologna, where he graduated in 1979. He launched his career in photography and many more studies followed.

"My grandfather Guido was an engineer and the source of his original fame was the excavation project of two famous imperial ships at Lake Nemi, which he lead. Lake Nemi has been a mysterious place since antiquity and it has been written about, by many classical scholars. This project began in 1929 and the lake was finally drained in 1932 revealing the historical ships. This discovery created much interest and it reached the world press." Guido used a device that consisted of a frame and glass. He died when Giorgio was only ten years old. "I have guarded his frame-and-glass device that he used to take pictures of landscapes with. He used to expose the glass to the sun-rays for hours because, at the time, the sensitivity of materials was much lower than it is now. This gadget fascinated me, although I never experimented with it myself."

Guido's son, Gianfranco Ucelli, was also an engineer and a pretty good photographer. He took interesting pictures of Milan after the bombings during the Second World War, which he recently exhibited at the Rotonda della Besana. "My cousin is Gianfranco's son so, as you can see, the knack for photography is prominent in our genes, even though it only ever presented itself at an amateur level. I am proud to be the first professional photographer in the family.

A learned, accomplished and experienced individual, Giorgio is congenial, very personable and always ready to offer his assistance and collaboration. He also displays a strict professional discipline towards his approach to work. Generally speaking, combining art and discipline, given the intrinsic nature of artists, is by no means an easy feat. In addition, he maintains his stance at the very forefront of technological advances in photography, by investigating all the new developments in his field.

Throughout his life, professional and private, Giorgio Majno constantly pursues the concept of "beauty". He claims that aesthetics and appearance don’t have many direct correlations with beauty, whereas inner balance and harmony do. This is the kind of magical equilibrium he seeks when creating his photographic art. An example of this equilibrium that he captures, is available on his website www.giorgiomajno.com for further reference. How does he manage to make a cabbage look sexy? By extracting the strength and simplicity contained in the natural and artificial textures in his subject.

His pursuit of beauty derived from the influence of Edward Weston, considered to be one of the best American photographers, who said that photography represented for him, a kind of ‘revelation’. "In fact", Giorgio said, "one can perceive a peculiar depth in Weston's pictures. They look alive."

Val Chiavenna, a beautiful valley above the Lecco branch of Lake Como, lead him to research nature. He would repeat this research years later, when he collaborated with the artist Edvige Ripa in order to produce a set of artistic portraits of nature entitled "Blue Seasons", that were exhibited in the Gallery of Art & Design of Milan, in 2004 and also in London, England. Giorgio applied his skills to many different photographic sectors that ranged from industrial to portraiture and still life, always maintaining an open mind in relation to the different techniques, while never ceasing to incorporate comprehensive research through various phases of his work.

Daniele: "When did you have your first experience with photography?"

Giorgio: "The fist experience with photography, the one that made me love this field of work, occurred in my cousin Bruno’s dark room. It was, in fact, the closet below the staircase and it’s where I developed all my photos throughout the 70’s. I had my second most important experience after high school, when I was eighteen and I decided to go on a trip. The destination was Calcutta, India with a group of friends in a Volkswagen van and a mission of photographing everything, but especially people. It was a rich, hippie-style adventure, that lasted three and a half months. Last year, when some pictures of that journey were published in a book about Indian women edited by Loredana Gazzola – India al Femminile – I had the pleasure to relive these memories."

Since he was a photograph enthusiast, when the moment came to enter university, he chose the only faculty that included a photography course: D.A.M.S. (Discipline of the Arts, Music and Show-business), in Bologna. Italy doesn’t offer enrollment possibilities in photography courses at university level, as are available in America or Germany, so that was his only feasible option.

Luckily, an excellent photographer, Paolo Monti, ran the photography course at D.A.M.S. In reality, Giorgio was not so sure if he wanted to become a photographer, because he was receiving a comprehensive visual arts education at D.A.M.S, and only a few graduates chose to become photographers. In the end, however, he did opt for a photography thesis, entitled "Rural Architecture in Chiavenna Valley". With the assistance of local people, he spent months taking pictures of the characteristic wooden, stone and granite houses of the locale.

He learned still life photography while working as an assistant, for about 6 months, to a photographer who was a Pirelli employee.

"Illinois turned out to be my stepping stone into the Big World", says Giorgio, "after my graduation, I felt like traveling again. I knew that a few scholarships were being offered in the United States and I applied for Rhode Island School of Design, San Francisco Art Institute and New York's Columbia University. Sadly, I wasn’t accepted by any of them. A fourth possibility presented itself at South Illinois University in Carbondale and, this time, I was successful in obtaining my acceptance. Carbondale was a remote town, which comprised of a seven-hour drive from Chicago and, when I first saw it, I felt discouraged, but it turned out to be an extraordinary experience. Here, we had many possibilities to train in dark rooms and photo studios. Being a graduate student I had access to a key, which enabled me to work anytime that I wanted to.

I was 26 years old and my stay there lasted for three years. Besides studying for my masters, I was teaching photography in classes that consisted of approximately 15 students each. This allowed me to earn about US $500 of extra money per class, which was fairly decent at that time."

He continued working in a teaching capacity at the gallery I.F. and at the I.E.D. European Institute of Design, in Milan. Giorgio prepared for his Master of Fine Arts at the department of cinema and photography portraitures in black and white. Gianfranco Colombo presented him with the opportunity to have his first solo exhibition at the famous Italian photo gallery 'Il Diaframma' in via Brera, Milan in 1985.    Giorgio has worked for many renowned companies and influential magazines, and he has had his photos shown at exhibitions throughout Italy and in London, England.

To date, the listing of his photo exhibitions is very long indeed and it includes "Arazzi a Milano" Idea Group Milano, Lois De Poortere, "La casa Bagatti Valsecchi" ed. Scala in 1994, "Vestire la Luce" ed. Silvana Amilcare Pizzi in 2000, "Grandi Giardini Italiani" ed. Rizzoli libri illustrati in 2002 and two books for the F.A.I. ed. Skira.

The list of journals that he contributed to include: Antiquariato, Gardenia, Arte, Case e Country, CasaAmica, Elle Decor, La mia casa, Spazio casa, and Airone.

In reference to shooting with medium and large format cameras, Giorgio maintains: "It’s certainly easier to organize a still life project rather than a photographic session for purposes of fashion or reportage. My characteristics are perfectly suitable for this because I'm calm, meditative and precise. The first jewelry catalogue I worked on, was for De Beers in large format 10x12 with Sinar. I also photographed the staff of De Beers Thompson with Hasselblad in format 6x6."

"The most renowned jewelers of via Montenapoleone (Buccellati, De Beers, Cartier, and others) commissioned me to create very interesting pieces. I photographed personalities such as Cecilia Pirelli, daughter of Leopoldo Pirelli (owner of the Pirelli industry), Miss Buccellatti (Buccellatti Jewelry), Gioia Marchi Falck (Giovanni Falck’s daughter), all wearing the jewelry that was being presented in the pieces. I used my Sinar in large format 20X25, using Polaroid film material. The photos that were shot employing this method, offered an amazingly warm perspective and were really unique in their beauty. I was very proud of the results."

Large and medium format Cameras were used in the work commissioned by his friend from Montedison, a Milan-based energy, chemicals and agro-industry conglomerate. Over a number of years, Giorgio enjoyed shooting industrial footage in part by photographing all the employees that were representing the various industries. These photos, however, were shot with his Hasselblad format 6x6.

While in the United States, he befriended many students. One of them, Paul Elledge, became a photographer in Chicago. Paul loves Italy and married an Italian woman. With his friend Paul, they organized various projects together: once in Barbagia, in the central areas of the Sardinia region (a beautiful island) and once in Sicily, always electing unconventional ways by stationing themselves at the first agro-tourism locales – country inns. For two weeks they scouted the areas with assistants, searching for the best portraiture possibilities in the rural community. In the evenings over dinner, they would use their time discussing the day’s work. Paul later published some of this material. Giorgio used a wooden folding Deardorff & Sons 4x5. Folding cameras are ones that may be folded into a compact and rugged package when not in use. Therefore, it was practical and easily manageable, but versatile at the same time. This type of camera was used a lot in the United States and by legendary photographers such as Ansel Adams and Wegee (Arthur Fellig).

Giorgio purchased his first professional digital camera only one and half years ago. A 12 mega-pixel Nikon 2 DX, this camera offers opportunity. Its ultra high resolution, lends itself to almost any variation of daylight and atmospheric conditions, handling each very well and offering astoundingly clear results.

Being able to go on a shoot completely unaccompanied – just one man, the Nikon and a computer and being able to review the work almost instantly, is very empowering. No longer does one have to bring along an assistant carrying the heavy equipment and lights. No longer does time have to be wasted waiting for the lab to develop the pictures. Gone are the days of light meters. There is much less hassle and there are no unnecessary distractions. There’s also a great additional advantage, considering that this is a more ecologically friendly technique. Although we are talking about a new process and a new era, it’s still important to keep in mind that the resulting creations are still dependent on the knowledge and interpretation of the person that is operating the instrument.

Giorgio indicates that the commissioned work he considers most important is the one he developed for the F.A.I. (Fondo Ambiente Italiana). It comprised a photographic documentary about cultural and historical buildings and places in Italy. Since 1975, F.A.I. has worked to save, restore and open places of art and nature that are among the finest in Italy, to the public. A private, non-profit organization, F.A.I. obtains sites of historic, artistic and naturalistic value via donations, bequests or loans. The buildings are used, restored and opened to the public, ensuring that everyone is offered an opportunity to enjoy them.

Daniele: "What does your future hold in store?"

Giorgio: "My plans for the future include focusing on photographic research, communication and continuing to present my photos in exhibitions. I’d like to investigate certain subjects, in particular ones referencing body language and movement. I’m also interested in studying the possible relations between tree trunks and the human chest. From a professional point of view, I'd like to work with architecture, interiors, and gardens."

His artistic sensitivity is becoming increasingly mature while, at the same time, maintaining a fresh, crisp and young approach. He harmoniously combines the past and the future in his persona, by reflecting the familiar elegance of an Italian gentleman along with the presence of a family background filled with inspiration.

He is at the leading edge of the photography frontier, embracing every wonder ranging from life to nature. He does justice to nature by employing the best possible tools available. He makes its beauty shine from every aspect, awarding it the recognition and attention it deserves. He is a man who is carving his well-deserved niche in the history books of photography, while creating masterpieces and inspiring others.

Writing about Giorgio Majno is comparable to writing about the history of Milan or the history of photography from the ‘70s to the present. It was a very impressive and personally enriching experience. D

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