Umberto Fara

Umberto Fara, born in Oristano in 1972, spent his childhood in Cuglieri, on the western coast of Sardinia. His journey into photography began in 2010 when he started, capturing the captivating landscapes of his region “purely for fun”. His passion for photography quickly grew, leading him to gradually move away from landscape photography and focus on street photography, where he candidly and realistically documents his beloved homeland, rich in traditions and folklore.

Fara prefers to use black and white for most of his compositions while not completely neglecting  color. It is in the two-dimensionality of black and white, in its masterfully balanced contrasts, that the textures come to life, all the details of those bodies carved or smoothed by light and time that stand out in the rugged streets of a veritable Sardinia.

It is through his sensitive gaze that he manages to offer an authentic glimpse of daily life, guiding observers to discover an ancestral and wild land. His artistic vision is romantic and imbued with an ancient flavor; it reflects a classical approach to street photography and reportage, standing out for the search for emotionally compelling content. The expressions are exaggerated, the gazes intense, the limbs contracted; everything in Fara's shots is subject to a strong tension that makes his subjects dynamic, plastic, and incredibly expressive.

With a style that deviates from the canons of contemporary street photography, Fara stands out precisely for his ability to tell authentic, timeless stories, where the consciousness of the present and that of the past are tied by an unbroken thread.

His most recent photographic project, "Codex Sardinia," aims to comprehensively depict contemporary Sardinia, a land deeply rooted in popular traditions expressed through various cultural manifestations, which also permeate daily life. From folkloristic events with traditional costumes to religious rites and vibrant Carnival celebrations with their distinctive masks, Fara, through this photographic journey, portrays a land where customs and traditions constitute an intangible heritage that includes practices, representations, expressions, knowledge, skills, as well as tools, artifacts, objects, and cultural spaces recognized by communities and sometimes even by individuals as integral parts of their cultural heritage.

Main Exhibitions:

2023 - Lodine (Nu) in occasione della Manifestazione Autunno in Barbagia

2022 - Cuglieri (OR) in occasione della manifestazione "Monumenti Aperti"

2021 - Presentazione del progetto presso l'Associazione fotografica Dyaphrama di Oristano

2020 - Villaverde (Or) per ABANDA 2020 dell'Associazione Culturale Su Palatu diretta da Salvatore Ligios.

2020 - Olbia in occasione del Festival fotografico "Storie di un Attimo"

Dal 4 settembre al 6 ottobre 2021 presso il Museo del Fiore Sardo di Gavoi (Nu)

2019 - Loiri Porto San Paolo (OT)

Publications:

Pubblicazione sulla versione online (Luglio 2020) e cartacea (gennaio 2021) del mensile "Il fotografo" - https://www.fotografia.it/gallery/codex-sardinia-un-progetto-di-umberto-fara/

Pubblicazione sul blog Fotografico The Street Rover - https://www.thestreetrover.it/le-mille-facce-della-sardegna-negli-scatti-di-umberto-fara/

Pubblicazione sul sito Privatephotoreview - https://www.privatephotoreview.com/2020/06/codex-sardinia/

Awards:

Finalista al concorso internazionale Italian Street Photography Festival aprile 2021 (Roma) col progetto Codex Sardinia

Finalista al concorso internazionale Urban photo Award ottobre 2021 (Trieste) col progetto Codex Sardinia.