Do not speak
It was October 2011.
My youngest sister (at that time she was just 19) had just arrived in Italy to continue her studies at the roman university Roma Tre.
Like I did 8 years before her arrival, she left everything behind, our family, her friends, her memories … everything. She came to live with me, and unconsciously she brought me back in time, when I was 18 years old and had just arrived in Italy. I saw on her face fears and doubts that 8 years ago were mine too.
I saw myself on her face. This is why I decided to work on a autobiographic project. Since I wasn’t ready to point the camera on my face, I asked her to become my model.
I wanted to show how a person can feel in a foreign country; how difficult the initial time can be.
To make it more personal, I decided to add Rome as a background element at least in one photo.
On the roof of “Musei Vaticani”I had an idea. The distance between us and the city inspired me, I thought it was a good element to have in my project. I tried a few shots.
When we went back home, and I was editing my photos, I realized that there was an element which I hadn’t valued at the beginning: the shadow on her mouth. I had an idea. Eureka! I emphasized it, and the shadow became a gag. Yes, that was what I was looking for: the huge distance between me and the city and the inability to speak. I saw in that specific moment “Do not speak!”
When you are new and, specially when you are alone, integration might be very difficult due to the barriers that a group put in front of the newcomer.
The photo is part of the project holding lightly