Al di là del Tiglio. Un Ritratto di Todi

A volume of photographs of Todi, as seen through the faces of its artisans, shop keepers, farmers, professionals and artists. Images of its monuments as well, but even here the presence of the townspeople is felt, as in the old pasta factory, the printing machines in an old church, the train station places which seem to be awaiting the workers' arrival.
Thus the value of these faces which illuminate the context they are viewed in. Many are icons of trades that are now obsolete, others testify to political concerns or to popular traditions, paradigms of arts and professions. The human presence as an essential reference point, especially in its rapport with the town's structure, as in the card players in the square, or the saddle maker's workshop, in which a door frames the craftsman.
And when from the town the eye travels to the surrounding countryside, it is still Man who gives sense to Space, as in the images of farmers, or the shepherdess, which recalls landscapes of the 19th century.

Tatge, as many professionals, works here exclusively in black and white, refusing the attractive possibilities of chromatism. The color of life is evidenced in the contrasts, in the effects of light and in the subtleness of tones. The universe of the Umbrian town Todi is seen through the eye and mind of an artist who takes us through the daily life of the town using a medium of great descriptive immediacy. George Tatge is truly a European, born in Istanbul of an Italian mother and American father, with a long and prestigious career as a photographer.