Open City 2025. Rome in the Jubilee Year

A captivating and evocative photo book dedicated to the current jubilee year and the unexpected and momentous events that have characterized it so far, with the death of Pope Francis during the Easter celebrations and the announcement of the new pontiff Leo XIV after a brief conclave.

Conceived by VIVE director Edith Gabrielli and curated by Roberto Koch and Alessandra Mauro, this unprecedented exhibition project hosted in the Sala Zanardelli of the Vittoriano is an invitation to see the reality that surrounds us through the eyes of three exceptional photographers, Diana Bagnoli, Alex Majoli and Paolo Pellegrin. Their works document the atmosphere of this period and capture the visible and invisible aspects of the city of Rome in line with the sensibility of each of the three artists.

The more than 200 images on display, in black and white or color and in different formats, compose a unique and polyphonic narrative of the city. Diana Bagnoli offers a colorful vision of a widespread, mobile, itinerant mysticism, focusing on Rome’s numerous multi-ethnic Catholic communities. Alex Majoli’s images are specifically dedicated to the “dramatic scene” of the Jubilee, observed and composed as if it were the theatre of an ancient performance, while Paolo Pellegrin captures the faces of the faithful, seeking to establish a dialogue with them.

The exhibition is introduced by three videos, one on each author, created by videomaker and director Paolo Freschi, who followed the photographers’ work and recounted their creative process. A large LED wall shows an unpublished text by Valerio Magrelli, one of the most lucid poets, essayists and intellectuals on the contemporary scene. The garden of Palazzo Venezia also becomes an exhibition space for the occasion, with a series of totems displaying photos by the three authors that echo the exhibition at the Vittoriano, linking the two venues in a single narrative thread.

As a testament to the value of this project, VIVE has acquired two works by each photographer for its permanent collection.

Headline: Vanessa, a member of the Nigerian Catholic community of the Church of Sant’Ambrogio della Massima, near the Portico d’Ottavia in Rome. © Diana Bagnoli