Black version : Swiss Copta binding
Cover: Notturno | Pages: Modigliani Neve
White version : Self-covered with hardcover and visible Copta binding
Cover: Grey cardboard & Modigliani Neve | Pages: Modigliani Neve
THE CONCEPT
“Das Unheimliche” is a concept introduced in psychology by E. Jentsch and further developed in S. Freud’s essay of the same name. It is an attitude of the more general feeling of fear that arises when something is perceived as both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time, generating anxiety, confusion, and a sense of alienation. Therefore, the uncanny is a process of external recognition; the external world becomes uncanny when recognition fails.
Within the intricacies of the uncanny resides the factor of non-recognition, a subtle sense of estrangement in the face of what should be familiar. Like forgotten puppets in their wooden corner, childhood memories rest, somehow obscured by the fog of time.
There is something eerie in witnessing what was once an integral part of childhood, now distorted and distant, as if time had woven an intricate fabric of forgetfulness.
The uncanny feeds on the disconnection between the child we were and the adult we have become. It is a reflection of what we have removed to fit into the conventions of adult life, a mask that we hide behind the veil of time.
Perhaps it is in the rediscovery of these forgotten puppets that we can find the key to understanding the uncanny. Bringing them to light means facing non-recognition, delving into the folds of repression, and looking into the eyes of those puppets without fearing one’s own distorted reflection. Only then can we hope to reconcile with what has been hidden, restoring a balance between the lost childhood and the adult seeking to understand their own unsettling past.
DAS UNHEIMLICHE
| 1 |
The lights dim, and the tension in the air builds: the show is about to begin
| 2 |
Gradually, the puppets awaken
| 3 |
Taking on a life of their own
| 4 |
They move with unearthly grace, speak with enchanting voices,
and peer with vivid eyes at everything around them
| 5 |
They interact with humans, blurring the boundaries between reality and illusion
| 6 |
Some humans are puppets
| 7 |
Some puppets are human
But... how do these puppets come to life?
| 8 |
Yet, behind each cloth face hides a flesh-and-blood person
| 9 | & | 10 |
Who decides its movements arbitrarily
| 11 | & | 12 |
Often the one who takes the stage with them
| 13 | & | 14 |
The trick is revealed at the end of the show
But what makes them extraordinarily different from us?
Their purpose. Puppets come to life with a singular goal: to entertain the audience,
to evoke joy and amusement, offering an enchanted interlude in reality.
| 15 |
When the curtain falls and the show is over
| 16 |
Puppets are left aside
| 17 | & | 18 |
They retire and rest in the shadows
| 19 |
Awaiting the applause that precedes the next act of their existence
| 20 |
Ready to rise again when summoned to the stage
THE END
THE PHOTOS
Photographs become silent witnesses to movement, capturing the ephemeral life of a puppet. They are the means by which the photographer becomes a privileged spectator of the puppet’s life, recording the flow of time through the puppet’s actions. Each movement tells a story, a fragment of life that unfolds on the stage. In the apparent stillness of a shot, the vitality, the energy of the puppet is concealed, revealed in the photographic sequence, resisting the passage of time. Like a choreography of emotions, the photos narrate the adventures of the puppets. Each image is a frozen moment, a piece of a larger narrative where the puppet becomes the interpreter of an endless drama.
The photos were taken at Teatro Verde, Rome, backstage during the show “Chi ha rapito Santa Claus?” (by Andrea Calabretta - directed by Pino Strabioli), on 12/20/2023. The show is made with mixed technique: actor’s theater, puppets, shadows and figures. Special thanks to the Teatro Verde company for the opportunity, especially to Veronica Olmi, Andrea Calabretta, Giovanni Bussi and Valerio Bucci.
EXAM: IMAGE AND STORYTELLING STUDIO
MASTER: DESIGN, MULTIMEDIA AND VISUAL COMMUNICATION
SAPIENZA UNIVERSITÁ DI ROMA
PROF. SSA PAOLA BERTOLONE | TUTOR FRANCESCA POMPEI
