Scanno, no. 57

negative 1957–1959; print 1981 · Photograph · 30.1 × 40.2 cm

Can I see it?

Not on view at present

Where is “Scanno, no. 57” now? Collection: J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles. Not on view at present. Checked October 7, 2026.

J. Paul Getty Museum

Los Angeles, United States

It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.

Checked: 3 days ago
In this state since: Oct 7, 2026
Source: The museum

On the map Museum page

About the work

Following his sustained observation of hospice residents in Senigallia ([2016.179.6.10](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297444/), [2016.179.6.11](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297445/), [2016.179.6.12](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297446/), [2016.179.40](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297490/), [2020.74](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/350481/)), the photographs that Giacomelli made during trips to Scanno in 1957 and 1959 further demonstrate his ability to describe people in a specific time and place. In this town located in the Apennine Mountains of central Italy, about 270 miles south of Senigallia, Giacomelli encountered men and women going about their daily chores or gathering in the square, draped in dark garments or cloaks, their heads covered with hats or scarves.

Read on

Even when congregating, subjects seem to be isolated or lost in thought. Whether in sharp focus or blurred by movement, the occasional individual who looks directly into his camera suggests a sense of mystery or furtiveness. Giacomelli used a slow shutter speed and shallow depth of field to photograph these stark, black-clad figures against whitewashed architectural settings, introducing indistinct passages that amplify the fairy-tale mood of a town that appears to be irretrievably steeped in the past.

See other examples of works from the Scanno series ([2016.179.5.12](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297427/), [2016.179.7](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297453/), [2016.179.6.14](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297448/), [2016.179.26](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297475), [2016.179.30](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297479/), [2016.179.35](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297484/), [2016.179.39](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297489/), [2016.179.41](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297492/), [2016.179.44](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297498/), [2016.179.61](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297520/), 2019.176.5).

Included in the 1981 portfolio La gente (People), this print demonstrates Giacomelli’s penchant for emphasizing the graphic qualities of his photographs. Less interested in describing the world in a range of gradually incremented gray tones, he preferred to set deep blacks against brilliant whites, which he achieved by printing on high-contrast paper. The image of a lone Scanno townswoman approaching from the left and men gathered in the distance could easily be mistaken for a screenprint or movie poster. For another image from this portfolio, see also ([2016.179.6.17](http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/297451)). Virginia Heckert, J. Paul Getty Museum, Department of Photographs 2021

J. Paul Getty Museum