30 May │ Workshop: Image Constellation — tracing family stories with Beatrice Cera

Workshop (IT, EN): Image Constellation — tracing family stories
30 May 2026, 15:00–18:30
With Beatrice Cera and Anie Maki

Starting from the Mnemosyne Atlas by Aby Warburg—a series of panels that, through photographs, prints, and drawings, attempts to create an overall vision of the development of art up to the Renaissance—the method of image constellation is a visual mapping tool developed by the artists Dafni Melidou and Philipp Schwalb.

Photographic family archives are places where stories intertwine, are lost, and are rediscovered. Since the beginnings of photography—from long studio exposures to Kodak snapshots and beyond—there has been a desire to capture the circle of people with whom we share our lives most closely. But what do these photographs tell us, with temporal distance (whether short or long) from the moment they were taken? Is it possible that, in the light of the present, new meanings emerge? And to what extent does today’s perspective on a family archive help us reflect on the very concept of family?

In the workshop Image Constellation — tracing family stories, participants will be guided, using the method of image constellation, to establish connections between different existing family archives and to (re)contextualize them through the use of additional images, drawings, and dialogue. In this way, new stories—both real and imagined—can emerge, offering orientation as we reflect on our experience of family in the present.

At the end of the workshop, photographer Anie Maki will present her work Milk, Weight, Gravity, in which her family’s photographic archive serves as the starting point for a psychological exploration of herself and her ancestors.

Participants are invited to bring 10 images: 5 photographs from their family archive and 5 images (photographs, drawings, paintings, etc.) that reflect their personal idea of “family.” The photographs may be originals and will not be damaged. If digital files are brought, a printer will be available.

Location: Foto Forum
Language: Italian & English
Max. 15 participants
Open to all experience levels
Workshop fee: Foto Forum annual membership €15
Registration: info@foto-forum.it, +39 366 904 3610