The second edition of “Una Rete in viaggio: Storie, idee, progetti” (“A Travelling Network: Stories, Ideas, Projects”), promoted by the Rete Fotografia organisation, came to Trieste’s evocative Palazzo Berlam on 5 May, 2023. The event took place at the auditorium of the Generali Historical Archive, and this edition dived into the topic of the sea.

The photographic portrayals form an engaging testament to seeing the sea as the vital component of civic identity, life, and the fluidity and dynamic nature of reality that it is, and subsequently in its representation.

The contributions invited the viewer to reflect on the eternal dialogue between man and the sea, and the evolution of the landscape that forms the backdrop to this relationship.

The growth of the Generali Group is inextricably linked to the water and to the free port established by Emperor Charles VI in 1719. It is no coincidence that the Group’s oldest photo albums are dedicated to the Trieste buildings that the Company always sought to establish along the water front.

Like the water itself, so too the photography reaches into every space, and the pervasive “grande bellezza” of the sea is ever-present in the institutions whose daily existence took or takes place on its threshold, such as the Autorità del Sistema Portuale del Mare Adriatico Orientale (Port Network Authority of the Eastern Adriatic Sea), the Museo del Mare di Trieste (Civic Sea Museum of Trieste) or the Fototeca dei Civici Musei di Storia ed Arte di Trieste (Photo Library of the Museums of History and Art of Trieste), as well as in more unexpected and distant locations such as the Museo delle Storie di Bergamo (“Museum of the History of Bergamo”).

Albumin, gelatin silver, business cards, album formats, stereoscopes and postcards point not only to the different understandings of the representation of place, but also to the variety of photography techniques employed.

The talk at the Generali Historical Archive focused on photography of the sea, and included Roberta Spada, Silvia Stener (Generali Historical Archive), Giulia Zolia, Raffaella Tamiozzo (Autorità di Sistema Portuale del Mare Adriatico Orientale – Port Network Authority of the Eastern Adriatic Sea), Claudia Colecchia (Fototeca dei Civici Musei di Storia ed Arte – Trieste – Photo Library of the Museums of History and Art – Trieste), Daniela Pacchiana (Museo delle Storie di Bergamo – Museum of the History of Bergamo), Andrea Bonifacio and Silvia Pinna (Museo del Mare di Trieste – Civic Sea Museum of Trieste). Una Rete in Viaggio sees the members of Rete Fotografia participate in a dialogue between themselves and with other institutions. It is intended as a journey of discovery of the central locations of the participating institutions, foundations and museums.

Participation in the event was possible in-person and online via the YouTube channel and Facebook page of Rete Fotografia.

In the afternoon, those registered for the seminar had the opportunity to visit the Generali Historical Archive and to participate in a coach trip to the main terminal of the Port of Trieste, to see the docks, cranes, trains and container ships first-hand.

Watch the event here.

Agenda
10am-1pm – Seminar
2pm-3:30pm – Visit to the Generali Historical Archive
3:30pm-5pm – Coach trip to the Autorità di Sistema Portuale del Mare Adriatico Orientale (Port Network Authority of the Eastern Adriatic Sea)