Can we collect all the fragments of our identity?

Fragmented Echoes: the silent witnesses of Murano
Supervisor: Gianluca Camillini
Co-supervisor: Roberto Gigliotti

"The city is the projection of society onto the territory" and is transformed through "global processes" and by profound changes "in the mode of production, in the city-countryside association, in class and property relations". The social change of a community thus influences not only its culture but also the topographical characteristics of the place where it lives: "The city changes when society changes".

Based on these assumptions of French sociologist Henry Lefebvre, I examined my hometown, Murano. The culture of its inhabitants maintained a certain continuity until the 20th century, so much so that to describe it the term glass monoculture was introduced. Only later the transformation into global city caused an economic and social upheaval that involved the entire island, converting Murano from a purely productive place to a predominantly selling centre. The fragmentation and downsizing of the furnaces led to a loss of knowledge and a socio-cultural impoverishment of the city.

The aim of the project is to document the change in Murano’s society from the 20th century to the present day and the way it is reflected in the territory and the community living there. By identifying and collecting in a visual communication project the fragments of Murano's identity, represented by the lost histories of the buildings and the direct testimonies of the inhabitants, the aim is to raise awareness of the fragility of the island's cultural heritage, to encourage its revitalisation and promote sustainable tourism.