Young Italians like Luca Troiani developed a strong criticism towards the system that characterizes the world of job in Italy as opposed to the current situation in other countries.
In recent years, the destination of many young Italians looking for work in the different business areas is “everywhere except Italy!”The image of Italy is that of a country where things are off-hand and it’s true! Young people bore the brunt of years of low growth and the failure of previous governments. Two million of them don’t work while their fathers are protected by rigid employment contracts. The result is a two-tier system that pits the old workers from a younger generation that struggles to advance: the younger can find only short-term employment contracts and poorly paid.
Our politicians say that we need to have more imagination, we have to invent our job, but how do we come up with a job?
Moreover, why should we invent it when they should simply create the conditions in order that everyone could work? In the meantime, two friends of mine tried to make ends meet with their passions!
In Luca Troiani’s photos, you could breathe the air of San Benedetto del Tronto, our native city. They’re full of sun, heat, and colors. They’ve got a huge visual impact on the viewers. Maybe I’m wrong but every time I glance at them, I imagine a sentimentalist unconcerned boy behind the camera and then, I smile. It seems he’s just left a piece of the world that attracts him, a piece of that world we like too.
How would you describe your photographic style?
Well, this is hard for me to describe. I like to shoot most anything. I like the challenge of going from shooting landscape one day to close up the next and dabbling in portraits the day after. I love bokeh and great use of colors. So, in a lot of my photos, you’ll see very vibrant colors and a lot of bokeh. I like to detach my subject from its surroundings to give it its own dimension to occupy. To me, that’s what I love most about photography – looking at the world in new ways.
Where do you find creative inspiration?
Most of my inspiration comes from anything that stands out to me. I can take a short walk around my house and find something new to photograph every day. I’m inspired by the little things that we seem to miss in our day to day activity. I’m inspired by beautiful moments or stories. You seem to use a lot of symbols in your work.
Do your paintings tell stories or are they simply decorative elements of the painting?
Yes, I put a lot of symbols in my works. Everything in my photos has a symbolic meaning (the colors, a little flower, the sea, a rope, etc.) This is my encoded language and how I present my ideas to spectators. And yes, every photo has a special story.
Your first job is an architect, so do you think that here in Italy, it would be difficult to become a famous photographer?
I think there’s a sort of “caste”: only if you come from a specific world and you have some recommendations you could become famous. But I’m happy because, up to now, I sold three of my best photos having New York as theme. It’s good for an unknown-25-boy! And I hope that in two or three years I’ll make a name for myself. I try to face this crisis with my art and I really hope that young people will start to listen to their passions and create their own job based on them.
Barbara Mascitti