NNA – Today, the Italian Cultural Institute organized a tour for the Lebanese media to shed light on the photography exhibition A city, a tale, at Beirut Art Center. 

The exhibition, prepared in collaboration with Gabriele Basilico Archive and Beirut Art Center under the patronage of the Italian Embassy in Beirut, showcases 57 photographic works by Gabriele Basilico and is on view until April 6th, 2024.
Gabriele Basilico, a photographer of international renown, appreciated by the Lebanese public for his photographic works on Beirut, is known for his images of the world's great metropolises. Through 57 works, most of them selected by the artist himself for a catalogue published by Phaidon Press in 2001, the exhibition traces, without exhausting them, both the intellectual journey of the artist, who was mainly interested in the history of cities and the bonds of memory, and his forsaking of a photojournalistic vision for an evolution towards the study of the urban landscape. The exhibition also testifies to his participation in several important photographic missions, such as D.A.T.A.R (1984-85), the Hariri Foundation (1991) and MoMA San Francisco (2007).
During the inauguration ceremony, the new director of the Italian Cultural Institute, Angelo Gioè, stated: "The IIC's program for the next three years will place great emphasis on Italian photography, as this artistic medium is closely linked to the cultural identity of a country. Starting with an artist who had a great love for Beirut and Lebanon seemed natural to us". 
While Giovanna Calvenzi Basilico, director of the Basilico Archive, said: "We appreciate the policy of promoting contemporary art pursued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, which, through its Cultural Institutes, proposes the best of Italian photography and allows it to be discovered or studied in depth. Gabriele Basilico has left an indelible mark on the world of photography thanks to his innate taste for art. The presentation of a retrospective of his work in a city like Beirut, to which the artist was particularly attached, is of great value".
For Beirut Art Center, this exhibition is a continuation of the sustained commitment to nurturing new channels of exchange and dialogues locally, regionally and internationally. Reem Shadid, the Director of BAC reflects on the significance of the exhibition, stating: “Basilico’s photographs of the world’s metropolises enrich our mission to offer visitors the space and time to disengage from the trials and tribulations of the daily spectacle in Beirut, while engaging with photographs that invite diverse imaginations and conversations around the role of the image and representation in relation to lived realities.”

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