00:00The theme of this exhibit, The Great Wisdom, was an idea that came because I believe that both the indigenous people of our planet and the animals and ecosystems of our planet have tremendous wisdom that we need to understand, that we need to study, and that we need to respect if we want to restore the health and balance to our planet.
00:22I wanted to study marine biology because I've always had a fascination from the ocean. It was born in me because when I was a child I read the books of Emilio Salgari who was born in Torino and he wrote amazing stories of adventures and animals in the sea.
00:39But once I started to understand that the ocean is not only important because it's beautiful but also because it supports all life on Earth.
00:49The ocean gives us 50% of the oxygen we breathe. It supports the food and protein of at least three and a half billion people on planet Earth and it's the home of 80% of life on the planet.
01:02So it's a very important ecosystem that we know very little about. I tried to reach people with science and it was very difficult and then I discovered photography.
01:13Photography is a great way to break the ice and create an invitation for people to want to know more. So I use my images as a gateway to start the conversation on how do we protect our beautiful planet.
01:27Conservation photography was a concept that came to my mind because I knew that there are photographers that are interested in nature but that don't do anything to protect it.
01:38Meanwhile there's other photographers that use their images to advocate for protection. I wanted to recognize that work by creating a name and an organization called the International League of Conservation Photographers.
01:52Conservation is something that takes many pieces like a big puzzle. You need the policy, you need the politicians, you need money, you need media, but you need communications and photography is a great tool to invite people to participate.
02:08And a lot of people don't realize that the ocean is what keeps planet Earth alive. 50% of the oxygen we breathe is generated by habitats like seagrass beds, but also by phytoplankton.
02:21As the oceans get warmer and become more acidic, these ecosystems are disappearing and can no longer fulfill their ecosystem mission.
02:31I don't know anybody who can hold their breath for half the time. So we better pay attention to the ocean and understand how the engine of our planet works.
02:39It spans over 20 years of Christina's career and all of the places that she's been. So in addition to the wonderful message that this exhibition has, it's also a celebration of her as an incredibly talented and dedicated artist.
02:57This show has a lot of special pivotal points from her career, but I think the most important part as a whole are the shots that are in the first segment, which is the humans.
03:07It's the first room that you enter when you enter the exhibition. These are the people who teach us this great wisdom that the show is about.
03:15And it's really important that they are honored. And additionally, that room has the biggest diversity and location and time span of Christina's career as well.
03:27This exhibition took about two years to put together. We always knew we wanted to do the theme that we have selected, which is enoughness and the great wisdom.
03:37But to select the photos, she has such an incredibly large body of work. It took some time to organize and to really decide what we wanted to show, to create a theme and then to organize it into the segments and rooms that it's been. But I would say about two years.
03:53Parlare di ambiente, interrogarsi sul rapport tra gli esseri umani e il pianeta rappresenta forse uno degli elementi che maggiormente caratterizzano l'attività delle Gallerie d'Italia di Torino.
04:07Certo la fotografia per forza, per immediatezza, per bellezza ti obbliga anche di fronte a fotografie facili, anche a fotografie che scaldano il cuore per la loro bellezza,
04:19ad interrogarti su ciò che vedi, sul significato che quelle foto hanno.
04:23Ecco, credo che questo sia il modo migliore, più efficace per obbligare le persone a contribuire ad una salvaguardia che riguardi tutti noi
04:33e che sia il modo migliore per condividere consapevolezza sull'importanza dei temi, degli argomenti in un momento storico come questo.
04:40Lavorare con Cristina Mittermeier è stato affascinante.
04:44Siamo di fronte ad una persona che ha dedicato la propria vita al rapporto tra, appunto, l'essere umano e il pianeta.
04:52E credo che sia importante tributare a Cristina, alla sua storia, una mostra esclusivamente dedicata a lei.
05:00Io credo che sia la prima volta che accade in Europa.
05:03La bellezza delle sue fotografie, la forza delle immagini che lei condivide con il suo pubblico, credo che abbia pochi rivali al mondo.
05:12E lo dico con una piena consapevolezza.
05:14Le Gallerie d'Italia fanno questo. Lavorano con fotografi, con committenze originali, aggiungendo alle foto scattate per l'occasione storie che sono più vecchie, racconti che sono frutto di anni e anni di lavoro.
05:28Ma il risultato oggi merita di essere visto.
05:31E anche qui ci sono delle collaborazioni importanti.
05:35Le Gallerie d'Italia non lavorano mai da sole. Questo avviene con altre fondazioni culturali, avviene con le istituzioni pubbliche, avviene con interlocutori, come in questo caso è National Geographic.
05:48La testimonianza di un progetto fortemente italiano, di caratura internazionale, di respiro europeo, si registra e misura anche grazie a questa particolare forma di collaborazioni.
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