The Colors of silence

There is a remote monastery in the Serre Calabre, the most forested mountains in Calabria, the least visited and least known of Italy's regions. In recent post-war years, a road reached this unknown valley, connecting a small village, named after a saint, to the rest of the world. The village was born to house the carpenters and artisans working on the construction of a monastery. It was 1090 when Saint Bruno of Cologne decided to retreat to this part of the Italian peninsula in prayer and silence, and it all began. He died here, leaving forever the seed of the Carthusian Order, which flourished and still today "spreads its fragrance" in the Certosa (Charterhouse).

The Certosa is famous for its rules: silence, seclusion, and prayer. It is a place not opened to visitors. This has made my professional experience unique. I was the first photographer in the 900-year history of this place to be welcomed inside. To live in a cell like a monk. To share their meals and time of prayers. Always with my camera in hand. To better understand the Carthusian monastic world, I respected all the rules. Silence, first and foremost, but also fasting. I spoke only with the Father Prior, and only when necessary. I was granted a few brief personal interviews to better understand the lives of the monks—or at least those who agreed to be interviewed. Otherwise, I spent time with them, even individually in their cells, without speaking, but simply observing and photographing. It was a unique experience, both professionally and personally, that is difficult to replicate. We felt united in absolute silence, as if we were communicating loudly. From this experience came a book, The Colors of Silence, one of a kind and never, in fact, replicated by others.