Francesca Woodman

XI-VI-MMXXIV

“The story is not in the image, but in our relationship with the image, in what it deposits within us.”

From this consideration, Bertrand Schefer writes the book “Francesca Woodman,” a short narrative that talks about her, seeks her out, reconstructs her, and aims to save her from oblivion, not so much as an artist, now consecrated, but as a human being. Woodman is a star that leaves a powerful luminous trail, entering the empyrean of art with frightening speed and, in that same fear, leaves the earth of her own will at twenty-three years old. The author, at times moving, at times capable of surprising, leaves us with questions and reflections on the power of photographic images and some unknown elements about her. We are (very) interested because it emphasizes how the gaze that touches the surface of an image can satisfy the pleasure of a moment and at the same time push us to search for depth. Especially when we are faced with a work of art. It is a possibility, not an obligation, and we believe it is worth it.

Bertrand Schefer, Francesca Woodman, Johan & Levi Editore, 2024.