Arrivederci, Maestro: Italo Zannier

A farewell to a master of Italian photography, and the memory of a portrait made in our studio on the Giudecca.

Italo Zannier, born in Spilimbergo in 1932, photographer, historian and critic of photography, and the first holder of a university chair in the History of Photography in Italy, has left us. For us at Animica Studio Art Gallery he was also, for a brief and precious stretch of road, a guest and a friend.

It all began with someone passing by the studio

Our meeting came about almost by chance. Giuseppe Zanon, a photographer and a close friend of Barbara Pigazzi, stopped by one day while we were outside on a break, and we started chatting. He told us he knew Italo Zannier, and that he had heard him remark, walking right past our windows, that this photographer was really good and that he wanted to meet her.

We were speechless, and delighted. Barbara immediately told Zanon to bring him to the studio, for a meeting and, if he wished, for a portrait.

The visit to the studio, March 2025

When Zanon managed to bring him to us, it was a wonderful encounter. Before us stood a man of very advanced age but remarkably sharp in his replies. His hearing problem was evident, and an earpiece helped him, but he never showed a moment of difficulty and never grew tired: he stayed in the studio for a long time talking with Barbara, looking at the photographs on display and at the images from her exhibitions, offering precious compliments and observations.

Then he walked into the pose room, where more photographs sparked another long conversation. On one of Barbara’s works, La gabbia (The Cage), he asked for a dedication, and he asked for our phone number and email so we could stay in touch.

Barbara proposed that he pose for an author’s portrait, and he accepted. While posing, Zannier did what he did at every moment of his life: he took out his little compact camera and photographed us too. A photographic exchange between colleagues followed, with shots by Barbara, by Giuseppe Zanon and by Marco Luce, photographers and friends of Barbara who were present at the meeting.

Handing over the portrait on the Giudecca

Barbara then worked on the image and, on the opening day of his exhibition on the Giudecca, Famosiamici – fotoritratti… passeggiando alla Giudecca, we went to hand him his portrait. We documented the moment in the photographs we publish here: a simple gesture, to show him the affection and esteem we felt for him. On show was also a self-portrait of his with a cat, a homage to Wanda Wulz.

What he leaves us

We are immensely proud to have crossed his path. He left us a part of himself: his presence, his way of seeing things, his professionalism and a deep empathy. The portrait Barbara dedicated to him, taken in our studio on the Giudecca in March 2025, is our way of saying thank you.

Arrivederci, Maestro.