“Guardami” (“Look at me”)

The “Guardami” project seems to confirm the saying that one’s name is one’s destiny. Indeed, because, on September 19, after being shown at cinemas, festivals, and readings, and after being seen by many audiences, it came to MAST in Bologna. For over ten years, MAST (Manifattura di Arti, Sperimentazione e Tecnologia), an exhibition space and multipurpose center, has operated as a result of the determination and passion of the MAST Foundation and of Isabella Seragnoli, the entrepreneur and philanthropist who founded it.

For “Guardami,” it was an honor to reach such a prestigious stage. Conceived by Silvia Colombini, it began as a creative writing laboratory, became a docufilm directed by Martina De Polo, and a book published by Edizioni Pendragon. “Guardami” talks about beauty from the viewpoint of blind and visually-impaired young people. The eight stars of the docufilm and authors of the book (Candy Castellucci, Filmon Yemane, Alessia Mambrin, Ivan Silvino, Karim Gouda, Marco Zollo, Akeem Abu Karaky, and Veronica Giorgiana Malureanu) are all present or past students at Cavazza, and demonstrate the extent to which the many cultural and training activities organized by the Institute allow young people to express themselves freely and independently. Prior to the presentation of the project, a group of young people from the Institute took part in a tour of the exhibit of works by Mohamed Bourouissa, with photographic sculptures and installations, guided by Ambra D’Atri, a highly experienced cultural mediator. This was followed by the presentation of “Guardami,” with the participation of Pier Michele Borra, the Institute’s Vice President, Loretta Secchi, art historian and curator of the Anteros Tactile Museum, and Martina De Polo, director, introduced by Federica Rapini of Pendragon.

The docufilm was projected with an audio description for everyone to emphasize the concept of inclusion and accessibility, one of the project’s drivers. At the end, Marco Zollo and Filmon Yemane gave an emotional account of their experience, touching everyone in the audience. It’s really true that certain evenings are born under a good star, and September 19^th was one of them. We are deeply grateful for the assistance and hospitality of MAST, whose energy and commitment, in collaboration with the Cavazza Institute, made it possible to organize the event and to demonstrate to the city of Bologna that beauty – if you know how to look – is really everywhere.

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