Archival Giclée Pigment Print on Archival Paper
Limited Edition of 5
42 x 70.6 in
107 x 179 cm
US $ 4,600
This photograph from 1960, epitomizes Enzo Ragazzini’s mastery of light manipulation and darkroom techniques, creating an ethereal and mechanical effect that predates the digital era. The scene, showing a basketball game in motion, is transformed into a visual spectacle of energy and rhythm. Using his self-invented techniques, Ragazzini captured the dynamism of the players and the game, emphasizing their movements with streaks of light that echo through the frame. The distortion of the figures lends them a robotic or mechanical quality, though achieved entirely through manual processes without any digital intervention.
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This photograph from 1960, epitomizes Enzo Ragazzini’s mastery of light manipulation and darkroom techniques, creating an ethereal and mechanical effect that predates the digital era. The scene, showing a basketball game in motion, is transformed into a visual spectacle of energy and rhythm. Using his self-invented techniques, Ragazzini captured the dynamism of the players and the game, emphasizing their movements with streaks of light that echo through the frame. The distortion of the figures lends them a robotic or mechanical quality, though achieved entirely through manual processes without any digital intervention.
What sets this photograph apart is Ragazzini’s innovative approach to translating motion into visual rhythm. By projecting light patterns and manipulating the photographic exposure, he was able to create unique visual effects, resembling a futuristic or surrealist interpretation of the game. This technique of overlaying light and shadow to create patterns mirrors his earlier Op Art work and reinforces his fascination with visual distortion.
This photograph was later used to create a gigantic mural for the Palazzo dello Sport in Rome, an architectural and engineering marvel constructed during that period. Ragazzini’s precise yet manual method, achieved through darkroom experimentation, gave life to dynamic compositions like this long before today’s computer-based tools could offer such effects. This makes his work particularly groundbreaking for its time, standing as a testament to the artist’s creative ingenuity