The Russian Academy Of Arts

The Italian Institute of Culture, Russian Academy of Arts and Moscow Museum of Modern Art present “To Whisper” exhibition of Frank Dituri and “The Density of Silence” exhibition of Elio Ciol, noted Italian masters of black and white photography who work in various stylistics and techniques but are distinguished by a peculiar personal vision of the world and the feeling of harmony and beauty.

The renowned artist Elio Ciol is represented by his works devoted to Italy where he was born in 1929, its wonderful land, cities, people, its past and future. “He is very much attached to his homeland and its culture, his adoration of Italy is similar to a religious feeling. This land for him is not only a point of counting, but also a point of return, this theme is closely connected with the artist’s religious and philosophical views” – as it was noted by his contemporaries. The old historical town of Assisi, the heart of the Franciscan worship, has been depicted by Elio Ciol both in the sun beams and in the mist, from the distance to focus on beautiful vistas and from nearby perspective. He has been constantly experimenting with pictorial and technical forms and media, for instance, the infrared photography. For Elio Ciol the world is a realization of the beauty and harmony and the wish to share this happy discovery has become the essence of his life.

Elio Ciol was born in Casarsa della Delizia in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, where he has principally lived and worked. He first got acquainted with the photography in his father’s studio.

And now his son Stefano continues the family tradition. In the 1950s Ciol was a member of the Venetian photo club “La Gondola”, took part in the New York international photography competition and won several prizes. The topic of Assisi has taken a special place in his work: his first album of photographs depicting Assisi was published in 1969 and republished five more times in different languages. The Italy Black and White book was also published in several languages and won a prize in London along with albums of such renowned photographers as Sebastiao Salgado, Irving Penn and Paul Strand. His photographs can be found in major museums in Europe, the United States and Canada, they were exhibited in 102 solo shows, as well as 112 group exhibitions and illustrated in almost 200 books.

“I am not at all interested in the search of “critical moments”, instead I appreciate a feeling of the presence of Time” – says Frank Dituri, born in 1946. His images, hardly tangible and almost illusory, combine the reality and its psychological hidden motive. The light coming through vague silhouettes of wood trunks, hardly visible human figures in the foggy city areas, a subject in the interior… The topics are absolutely simple. The masterly game of black and white colors and compositional elements transform the obvious. The world of his works is poetic, full of mysterious silence so much necessary to penetrate deep into the heart, to contemplate, to listen to, to hear and reflect.

Italian born Frank Dituri grew up and became a photographer in New York. The range of his art passions differs from the metaphysical surrealism of Giorgio de Chirico and realistic painting of Edward Hopper to the work by Pietro della Francesca and poems by the producer Paolo Pasolini. Frank Dituri’s work has been exhibited worldwide and published in many prestigious publications. His bibliography includes almost 20 solo albums. For over 30 years he has been teaching and has given many workshops on photography in the major educational institutions in Europe and the United States. His work is in private and public collections of universities, museums and galleries.

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