Could you briefly tell us about your gallery and work?

Photography has always been my passion. An amateur’s passion, as it was never meant to be my job. I enthusiastically took on a career in management, and when I had my four children, I left my job to take care of my family. One day, I met a friend – architect and photographer Aldo Sardoni, now the Artistic Director of the Gallery – who shared his opinion on my personality, which he judged appropriate to the role of gallerist. It all started as a joke, then we began to talk about it seriously and we opened an art gallery dedicated to photography. We liked the idea of spreading this form of art with an unusual key: we wanted to be the first gallery that not only sold photographs, but also allowed to rent them.

Located in Brera, in the artistic heart of Milan, in just a few years the gallery has conquered photography lovers thanks to an accurate selection of Italian – or rather European – artistic excellences. Authorial pictures to contemplate and purchase, but also entrepreneurial innovations such as the introduction of the “Art Rent” formula, for a chance to rent the exhibited works. The “Art Rent” formula, quite popular abroad, is not that fruitful yet in Italy, but has helped me develop a gallery format slightly different than the others, which has given me access to unusual contexts for art.

What’s Noema Gallery and how is it promoting its artists?

We mainly collaborate with Italian and European artists, because we believe they have a different sensitivity. People born and living in Europe are surrounded by 80% of the world’s entire artistic heritage, which probably influences the different perspective they have compared to artists from other areas. We like this kind of sensitivity, and this is the trait for which we stand out.

We are currently representing 14 photographers, and we are growing because we love the message we spread. Those who look at our pictures understand the homogeneous path behind them, and that we accurately choose our artists. The choices are made by our Artistic Director, because they need to be based on a strong culture and deep knowledge of the field, while I take care of the managerial aspects. When making our artistic choices, what we are interested in is the planning. We will never feature artists with casual or reportage shots. Our authors create projects and works on shooting sets. Every shot is planned, felt and set up with a precise idea of the necessary times. This rediscovery of time is a luxury at an age dominated by a relentless flow of images.

Milano Gallery Weekend: which opportunities can stem from events of this kind and how are you joining?

Our intention was to take authorial photography out of museums and galleries to make it known by as many people as possible, and thus contribute to the education of a surely sophisticated, satisfying aesthetic taste.

In this sense, we always try to be present at events like the Milano Gallery Weekend that aim to raise awareness of spread art and promote it.

This is perfectly in line with our daily work, where we look for partnerships with operators from different fields, such as prestigious interior design showrooms that customers approach with the intention of decorating their homes. When it comes to contemporary photography especially, there is no better way than artworks – even at accessible prices – to encourage future investments in what is “beautiful”.

Design and photography are possibly the best combination of two disciplines crucial to the image that Italy wishes to project outside its national borders.

For the Milano Gallery Weekend, Noema Gallery will inaugurate the photo exhibition “Depositi, arte nascosta” (“Depots, hidden art”) by Marco Lanza at Pellegrinelly Arreda’s Milan showroom, in the city center (via Molino delle Armi 2). It is already well known after being showcased at various museums and art fairs, and appreciated by many collectors.

The exhibition will be open for two months, from October 11 to December 23, and will be the first of a detailed program unfolding all along 2020 that will involve more spaces and artists curated by our gallery. The result is an absolutely beautiful exhibit that we invite everyone to see.