The dual exhibition Flemish flair by Camilla Di Bella Vecchi and Marco Gualdoni continues to captivate audiences at Galleria Leòn in Bologna, under the direction of Leonardo Iuffrida. Following its critical and public success, the exhibition has been included in the prestigious program of Art City Bologna 2025 and Art City White Night 2025, events that coincide with Artefiera, cementing its position as a key event in Bologna's artistic calendar. Located in the heart of the historic city center, Galleria Leòn is unique in its dual nature: one section houses a photographic archive featuring vernacular photography and works by masters of Physique Photography such as Bob Mizer and Bruce of Los Angeles; the other focuses on temporary exhibitions of emerging artists. Within this context, Flemish flair becomes a celebration of light, the body, and historical memory, merging tradition with contemporary aesthetics.

A tribute to Flemish light

The exhibition title directly references the ambiance of the great Flemish masters of the 15th and 16th centuries. Much like the works of Jan van Eyck or Pieter Claesz, light plays a central role in the works of Di Bella Vecchi and Gualdoni, gliding across surfaces and fabrics to reveal details with an almost tactile intensity. Human bodies emerge from dark backgrounds, objects shimmer in enigmatic compositions, and suspended visions transport viewers into a utopian and imaginary world, where every photograph invites contemplation and discovery. “It is a light that not only illuminates but narrates”, explains Leonardo Iuffrida, director of Galleria Leòn. “Through reflections and unusual juxtapositions, the artists offer viewers a perspective that transcends reality to shape a universe filled with beauty and mystery”.

Two perspectives, one poetic vision

Camilla Di Bella Vecchi and Marco Gualdoni provide complementary interpretations of the human body. Di Bella Vecchi focuses on the female figure, exploring the grace of gestures and hands. Her self-portraits evoke fragments of great masterpieces from art history, creating a dialogue between past and present, between painting and photography. Gualdoni, on the other hand, celebrates the male body through a classical lens. His compositions merge sculptural and floral elements, deconstructing the body to integrate it into enigmatic dimensions. The result is a balance of strength and vulnerability, inviting the viewer to reflect on identity and the essence of the human form.

A dialogue with photographic memory

Alongside the works of the two photographers, Flemish flair features a selection of vernacular photographs—genuine treasures of everyday life rescued from family albums and forgotten archives. Originally intended for private use, these images acquire new life and significance when placed in an exhibition context. They are windows into past eras, telling stories of travel, intimate portraits, and daily life, transforming into portals to collective memory. Leonardo Iuffrida emphasizes the importance of this material: “Vernacular photographs, with their authenticity and spontaneity, have the power to reveal the most genuine emotions. Observers become guardians of their beauty, interpreters of time and history”.

Rounding out the exhibition, Galleria Leòn dedicates a space to the Masters of Physique Photography, Bob Mizer and Bruce of Los Angeles. These two pioneers revolutionized the representation of the male body, transforming the celebration of musculature and eroticism into art. Bob Mizer is renowned for blending nudity and eroticism in an era when homosexuality was persecuted, bringing his works to the public through Physique Pictorial. Bruce of Los Angeles, in contrast, infused the genre with Hollywood glamour, capturing cowboys and nude men in compositions that blend nature and sensuality.

Their works, exhibited in museums like the Musée d’Orsay and the MOCA in Los Angeles, continue to inspire generations of artists and collectors. With Flemish Flair, Galleria Leòn not only pays homage to the great masters of photography and Flemish art but also builds a bridge between tradition and innovation, between memory and contemporaneity. The exhibition invites viewers to explore the infinite nuances of light, the body, and time, turning each photograph into a narrative that transcends the visible. The finissage is scheduled for February 15, 2025, offering a final opportunity to experience this exhibition that celebrates photography as the art of light and memory.