DIVA: No one can be himself

The project was born in May 2018, when the author decided to tell the story of Francesco, a twenty-six-year-old Italian queer from Sesto Fiorentino, a small town just outside Florence, where he still lives.

What emerges from the narrative is the path Francesco faced in living his identity as an expression of normality, in a society that is not yet ready to accept all of the different facets of a human being .

The boy's life is characterized by the symbiotic relationship with his sister Eleonora, who together with him undertook a path of physical, emotional and creative transformation: both of them underwent surgery to fight obesity; Eleonora supports her brother in the daily affirmation of her identity and together they have formed a band, "Glitter Diamonds". The first piece performed by the duo is titled "DIVA".

Photography represents the trait d'union that allows the viewer to focus on the experience and the metamorphosis of the protagonist. The experience of Francesco, thanks to the comparison with his family and with the author, becomes a means to convey the courage to show oneself as one is.

The project consists of images accompanied by audio contributions telling the twenty-six years of life of the protagonist.

An account of a personal experience opens up to the broader themes of acceptance of diversity and the recognition of the right to be oneself.

Is the project unpublished? Yes. A selection of the project was presented as a portfolio, during the portfolio readings that took place on November 25th in Lucca, during the Photolux 2018 Festival, and was recognized as the best portfolio. By virtue of this recognition, the award-winning selection will be screened during the Luz del Norte Festival which will take place in 2019 in Mexico City.