ORevery photograph tells a story. A story of rebirth, of willpower, of sporting commitment and victory. Shapes / Forms – Under the same light by Jacopo Di Cera, edited by Maria Vittoria Baravelliis an artistic project that tells the story of Paralympic sport, conceived and promoted by Procter & Gamble Italia in collaboration with the Italian Paralympic Committee and the Lombardy Region.
On display 44 shots dedicated to as many Paralympic athletes, representing all disciplines, portrayed from above, to offer an unprecedented point of view on the athletic gesture and on the meaning of sport as a space for inclusion. The portraits taken in the studio capture and highlight the shadows of the athletes, and send us an unprecedented author’s vision, capable of changing perspective and overcoming stereotypes.
Shapes / Forms – Under the same light: Paralympic sport told from a new perspective
The shadow of the skiers, swimmers, basketball players, poetically refers to their experience, to the inner strength and support of the team that led them to achieve important goals. Also interesting to watch the backstage of Shapes / Forms – Under the same light in the video above instagram.com/jacopodicera/reels with to find out how Jacopo Di Cera created the photographs on display. «Shapes / Forms was born from the desire to describe Paralympic athletics through an essential language, capable of going beyond the conventional representation of the body.
The zenithal point of view and the central role of the shadow allow us to suspend the frontal gaze and let the gesture emerge in its purest form. In this job the shadow does not hide, but amplifies the presence, transforming into a second body that restores the complexity of identity, made of discipline, fragility, technique and freedom. I looked for a photograph that neither celebrates nor emphasizes, but which invites us to observe carefully: because in every athletic gesture a human strength capable of becoming universal is manifested” says the photographer Jacopo Di Cera.
Giuseppe Romele. Photo by Jacopo Di Cera.
All under the same light
As the curator of the project, Maria Vittoria Baravelli, observes, Jacopo Di Cera’s objective «suspends judgment and puts everyone in the same light. A dazzling, almost democratic light that seems to cancel hierarchies. And yet, indeed within this apparent equality, what light is unable to govern emerges: the shadow».
Martina Caironi. Photo by Jacopo Di Cera.
The emotion of sport
«This exhibition is dedicated to the thing that is most exciting: sport. Which is absolutely exciting, but Paralympic sport is even more exciting. Because it manages to overcome difficulties which from a certain point of view, even technically, are certainly greater than ordinary sport” declares the President of the Lombardy Region, Attilio Fontana.
Mauro Bernardi. Photo by Jacopo Di Cera.
Shapes / Forms – Under the same lightwhere is the exhibition located?
The project is part of the program Samples Every Day. Initiative with which Procter & Gamble carries out concrete initiatives in Italy for promote access to sport for young people with disabilities promoting inclusion, socialization and a healthy lifestyle.
Shapes / Forms – Under the same light. Palazzo Lombardia, Spazio IsolaSET, via Galvani 27, Milan. Free admission, until 7 April 2026 10am – 7pm, Saturday 4 April 10am – 6pm, closing: Sunday 5 April 2026 and Monday 6 April 2026.
