PICTORIAL STORY
January 19, 2025
ISLAND
Photography and story by Enzo Crispino
Introduction by Melanie Meggs
Enzo Crispino’s latest photographic series, “Nêsos,” invites viewers into an introspective journey that mirrors the artist’s rediscovery of his voice in photography after a prolonged period of creative estrangement. Drawing from the Greek term for “island,” the project serves as both a personal metaphor and a visual exploration of isolation, self-reflection, and the human condition. Enzo, a self-taught photographer recognized for his works housed in collections such as the Italian War History Museum, the Reggio Emilia Civic Museum, and the Ros Photo State Museum channels his meditative perspective into visceral and intimate compositions.
This series is strongly shaped by Enzo’s broader artistic and literary journey. During the global pandemic, when his connection to photography waned, Enzo turned to poetry, composing verses that gave form to his emotions. His poems became a means of expression during a period of creative stillness. One of these poems, titled “Nêsos,” now frames the narrative arc of this photo essay, blending visual storytelling with the written word.
Enzo’s photographs, suffused with chiaroscuro and grounded in quiet reflection, unfold as a meditation on solitude and the fragmented self. Each image highlights ordinary objects and spaces imbued with symbolic weight — windows into the intangible world of memory, loss, and self-examination. Through this project, Enzo Crispino not only reestablishes his connection to photography but also transforms it into a compelling dialogue of light, shadow, and the human experience.
-min.jpg)
Nêsos
(from the Greek language: island)
It is evening
I close behind me
the front door of the house
An island in the lost sea
that devoured Atlantis
Silence stands as a barrier
protects me from the cacophony
and from my melancholies
that find peace
in these dark lights
I contemplate the shadows
guards
that veil
affections traces and findings
In each of them
parts of me...
~
Enzo Crispino
For a long time, I no longer felt the wonderful input of hearing a new idea for a photographic project. For almost two years I no longer picked up the camera, I felt I had nothing more to communicate, all I saw around me were fences and the delightful sound of the shutter no longer lit up my eyes.
During this persistent phase of disenchantment with photography, in which I still live, amidst countless questions that I asked myself and still ask myself, I realized this project that I had had in my head for years, but which only came to life last May.
The introduction to this project is this poem of mine with the same title that I wrote while editing the photographs in post-production. It was not my original intention to write poetry, I had never thought about it and it was not in my ambition to try my hand at writing. It was unintentionally on a Saturday morning, during the pandemic, that I wrote my first poem entitled ‘Arid Eyes’ on a small Post-it note, a few lines dedicated precisely to the situation of isolation in which we were forced to live and where our gaze day after day began to become more and more arid.
Writing verses here was salvific for me, and since then I have written 18 and some of them, including the first ‘Arid Eyes’, have received various prizes in national literary competitions.
Through poetry I had accidentally found another possibility to externalize a feeling of mine, which had been blocked during my phase of moving away from photographic production, towards which I had long felt a sense of estrangement.
In “Nêsos,” Enzo Crispino creates a space for reflection and self-discovery, offering a powerful look into his personal journey of reconnection with photography. The series is not only a return to the medium but also an exploration of themes like isolation, memory, and the passage of time. Through his thoughtful use of light and shadow, Enzo elevates everyday moments into profound, contemplative images that ask the viewer to pause and reflect.
What makes “Nêsos” truly compelling is its seamless integration of visual and literary expression. Enzo’s unexpected shift to writing during the pandemic allowed him to explore emotions that had previously felt blocked. This collaboration of forms gives the project a depth and intimacy that wouldn’t have been possible with photography alone — words and images, light and dark, silence and sound.
Enzo Crispino demonstrates the power of art to evolve. Through this series, he reminds us that even in isolation, there’s room for growth and creativity. It’s a reminder of the ways art can reconnect us with ourselves and with others, even in the quietest of moments.
The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in the text belong solely to the author/s, and are not necessarily shared by The Pictorial List and the team.
