Interview
Gianfranco Merati
Gianfranco Merati (b. Asmara, Eritrea, Africa) is an Italian photographer based in London. Gianfranco’s motivation as a photographer is that “beauty is everywhere.” He seeks to reveal it. For the last decade he has been developing his photographic practice, through building skills and reflecting on projects. Gianfranco’s focus is on abstract and conceptual photography, where most of his recent work has developed. Exploring the complex geometry found within nature, he has created many photographic series including projects revealing tessellating patterns within insects’ wings; magnetic fluid ‘pulled’ into rippling miniature landscapes; surreal shapes given to melted sugar; striking electricity lightning that dissipates through the air; and more. Projects are often the result of research into the properties of certain materials or phenomena and, in the most complex cases, may last for several weeks or months. At times, however, ideas spark from very simple things, like the observation of leaves that have fallen from a tree and that decay, but yet preserve a striking beauty in their inner structure. Using both high-tech methods and innovative use of basic means, each final image is exacting and verging on the unreal. This, despite the fact that Gianfranco does not manipulate his images digitally to create any illusions in his work.
What is your background and how did you start your journey in the art world?
“I am a self-taught photographer and I started my journey into photography organically. I did not sit down and said to myself ‘I am now going to become a photographer.’ Rather, I gradually started observing the world through my photographic lens, and discovered that in many ways I did not know what we call our reality all that well. New aspects of a portion of the world that surrounds us were revealed by some of my photographs and I found that fascinating. A process of discovery both of the surroundings and of myself.”
What does your work aim to say? Does it comment on any current social or political issues?
“‘Beauty is everywhere’ is the title I gave to my first book, which is coming out in mid-April. With that, I mean that the world that surrounds us has beauty in every corner. But beaty in the context of my work is intended not merely as an aesthetic attribute. Rather, it is intended more broadly as the result of the exploration and the observation of what we call our reality and what such process often reveals. For example, rotting tree leaves may not be a place we would instinctively go to, if we were looking for beauty in the aesthetic sense. And yet, when a decomposing leaf is observed carefully, it reveals its fundamental architecture, which reminds us how powerful Nature’s work is. In that sense, we can reveal beauty in a decomposing object, not because it is intrinsically aesthetically pleasing, but because it holds information that reveals complex processes that leaves us – or at least me – in awe. And that is the kind of beauty I am chasing. I see my work as my own exploration into our reality, in an attempt to understand it more profoundly. We can then debate whether what we call reality is indeed ‘the’ reality or whether we exist as a subcomponent of some kind of a larger thing that is the true reality; i.e. whether we are a dimension or projection of something bigger that is in essence the true reality. After all, some of the most prominent contemporary physicists seem to suggest that the Holographic Principle is a very promising hypothesis, but that is for another day.”
Do you plan your work in advance, or is it improvisation?
“I plan my work and I go as far as noting down how a given project will work. However, more often than not, I discover new things during the execution of a given project and that can either open-up the way for new projects or provide opportunities for ‘adjacent’ explorations. The discovery that leads to planning a project can however occur spontaneously. For example, a while ago I discovered in my garden that leaves that fall and die, decompose into beautiful ‘skeletons.’ Something I had never observed before and hence, I began exploring that theme through a project. So, let's say that there a fair amount of planning in my work, but then improvisation is very often present, as things that I did not plan often occur and those are often pleasant surprises - an opportunity for discovery.”
“My discovery is fed a lot by solitude and reflection.”
Are there any art world trends you are following?
“Not particularly, in that sense I am a bit of a hermit. My discovery is fed a lot by solitude and reflection. I do, however, visit exhibitions and galleries often but that could be from classic painters to modern avant-garde. There are things that I love at all extremes of the spectrum. And, of course, things that I do not like too.”
What process, materials and techniques do you use to create your artwork?
“The process is somewhat unconscious. Ideas pop to my head in ways that are not entirely clear to me. I then reflect on the ideas, plan the execution and proceed. In many instances I also have to document myself on scientific phenomena, which underpin some of my projects. The techniques are all related to photography and my aim is to have the final result as close as possible to what I want, straight off the camera. I do not have anything against heavy post-processing of images, but I rather spend more time to get things right on camera, than apply heavy post-processing afterwards. The materials that I use are very diverse. From liquid compounds, to glass spheres, to sugar, to spices, to water in its various forms, to magnetic fluid, to liquid metal and the list goes on.”
What does your art mean to you?
“It is my way of exploring what we call reality. As we were discussing earlier on, an attempt to understand our reality more profoundly. Some of the projects I engage with are prompted by questions such as what gives shape to living organisms or how living organisms keep their coherence, despite the fact that systems naturally tend towards chaos, according to some core principles of physics. From those kind of questions, series like ‘Resonance; are born. There I explore how vibrations can shape fluid, according to a known phenomenon called Faraday Waves. And the question I pose to myself, in this example, is whether vibrations have a role in giving shape to our reality.”
What’s your favourite artwork and why?
“There isn't one. There are too many out there to be able to reduce the whole to one. I love Caravaggio's paintings for the dramatic feel they transmit. But I also love Kandinsky's or Piero Manzoni's work for their innovativeness: they are different. They provoke. And these are only three examples that come to mind right now, but the list of art I love is very long.”
Have you had any noteworthy exhibitions you'd like to share?
“My work has been exhibited in various places across the globe, together with other formidable photographers. I have won several awards, but I wouldn’t go through that list as it would be tedious. Ultimately, first and foremost, the projects that I do are for me. If others can gain some benefits from my research, that is wonderful, but it is not the main objective.”
