Milan photograph: "Standing Deeps L.A." at Galleria dell'Ariete, 1973 c. 1973

Curator: This is Patrizio Parolini's "Milan photograph: 'Standing Deeps L.A.' at Galleria dell'Ariete," captured in 1973. Editor: It’s stark. The grayscale amplifies the brutal geometry. It feels like a stage set, waiting for something. Curator: The composition hinges on that stark contrast—the rough wall against the smooth panel, bisected by the horizontal line. It's about pure form, the relationship between planes. Editor: But what is it saying about the architecture of display, given its title reference to L.A.? It raises questions about artistic migration and the staging of identity. Curator: It is more about the stark reality of modernism than identity. The photograph reduces its subject to its most basic elements, line and plane. Editor: But to remove the socio-political element is to strip it of a conversation about class and economic status. The location reference is not incidental. Curator: I find the formal arrangement more compelling. Editor: That’s a fair perspective.