Un'impronta del mondo in Alto Adige

Discovering and confronting culture and occupation

as told by emerging talents

in the field of visual and narrative arts

Population in South Tyrol exceeds half a million.

Over two hundred thousands are active workers

and the 10% comes from all over the world.

Who are they? What’s their story and what are their dreams?

What’s their contribution to Alto Adige?

An imprint of the world in South Tyrol takes these questions and transforms them into a collective dialogue between employees, employers, trade associations and experts in the field.

Seven emerging artists met more than sixty individuals and told their stories through the creative languages of photography, video and writing, thus offering a new reading of multiculturalism and the world of work.

Reference: Dossier statistico immigrazione IDOS 2021.

The Artists

and their projects

Santiago Torresagasti

Windows

Chapter 1

Windows

Santiago Torresagasti's project consists of ten short films that can be considered as a glimpse into ten windows opened on a single day in the life of different individuals.

I would like to sustain Mother Earth with initiatives prone to the support of recycling and reducing pollution.

Noela Halilaj – Owner of Multiple Laundry Facilities.

Albania

I am not scared of facing a new culture.

Yang Honglin – Janitorial Engineer; Cultural/Linguistic and Mediator

China

I don’t want to sit down; I just want to work...for my future

Saikou Jagne – Agricultural Worker

Gambia

I aim to bring a bit of Japan into Alto Adige, that would be my own footprint.

Naomi Kondo – Wellness Center Operations Manager

Japan

I realized what happiness is and it is not for everyone.

Mayter Matos – Clerk; Latin American Dance Instructor

Cuba

To change the outside world, is to change ourselves in the first place.

Adrian Osorio Ofero – Club Soccer Player

Cuba

Culture matters. If you have it, you can open all doors; education is key.

Bassamba Diaby – Trade Laborer

Senegal

It’s such an emotion to know that you are appreciated for what you do for our city, despite the place you come from.

Syed Mehdi Abbas Rizvi – Researcher and interaction designer;

Oudsia Qurrat Ul Ain Shaukat – Graphic Designer

Pakistan

Open up your heart, and everything will open up to you.

Cesar Jesus Ruiz – Physiotherapist, Osteopath and Connective Healing Therapist

Peru

Art is life and life is art; I don’t see any difference.

Santjia Bieza – Performance Artist

Latvia

Samira Mosca

Lives between your hands

Chapter 2

Lives between your hands

With her photography, Samira Mosca witnesses various success stories in her work and social integration context through a personal approach focused on a deep knowledge of the subjects she relates with and their own stories.

Music brought me to Italy, and the oboe to Bolzano. It’s just like I followed its sound and its promise.

Setareh Heidari Khabbaz – Student

Iran

We need to understand our past if we want to look at the future.

Julian Cuero Gonzales – Sound Engineer

Colombia

It might sound unusual, but masking tape is an undeniably essential object in the cultural mediator’s job.

Daria Akimenko – Cultural affairs manager

Russia

When my father brought me to a theatre for the first time, I immediately knew that it was the place I always meant to belong to.

Alejandra Deaza – Fashion Designer and Sewing Instructor

Colombia

The only certainty I have is that wherever I may be, I’ll tell my story, culture and beauty.

Cecilia Zavala Cano – General Manager

Mexico

My family is my journey; my journey to Cuba, which I hope to come back to visit very soon.

Alejandrina Herrera Velma – Waitress at Restaurant, “I Piani”

Cuba

When I left, I was alone. I have always organized my own life; every place I have been to.

Birgitta Puustinen – Winery Owner

Finland

What many are going to try to shoot, is the target which I aim to own in my professional future.

Parmila Patwan – Social Worker

India

Courage: I internalized this word.

Radwa – Social Worker

Libya

No one can improve on their own. We always need to meet others; know them and try to understand them.

Costanta Cretu – Agency Manager

Romania

When you hear the sound of this hammer on wood, the Mass is about to start.

Don Marius Gheorghe Visovan – Process Worker; Catholic Priest

Romania

Davide Grotta e Veronica Tonidandel

In dialogue

Chapter 3

In dialogue

"In dialogue" brings together the viewpoints and perspectives of representatives of trade associations, professors and professionals working on the inclusion and integration of people with a migratory background in South Tyrol.

Listen to others and know yourself. Within this form of exchange, we get to help others as greatly as ourselves.

Claude Rotelli – Cofounder and President of Associazione Volontarius ODV

France, Italy

To work amongst others is a treasure and a true chance to grow.

Padre Georgekatty Abraham – Priest

India

Story telling is an essential tool of knowledge and mutual understanding.

Stefano Riba – Professor And CoCurator of HandyHands

Italy

The dream is to be able to travel and work without being judged.

Claudio Corrarati – Chairman of CNA, Trentino Alto Adige

Italy

We must look toward a future where the human being is at the center.

Alberto Conci – Director At Scuola Provinciale per le Professioni Sociali “Emmanuel Lévinas”

Italy

People from foreign countries bring along wealth and new experiences.

Heini Grandi – Board Member of Coopbund Alto Adige Südtirol

Italy

Work is key to feel ourselves at home. To feel ourselves at home flows through work just the same.

Mirco Benetello – Director at Confesercenti Alto Adige

Italy

I really hope everyone might find their own role, their own place.

Silvia Casazza – Coordinator at Scuola Provinciale per le Professioni Sociali “Emmanuel Lévinas”

Italy

Valentina Gentili

A chat at the bar

Chapter 4

A chat at the bar

Valentina’s personal research work is based on two pivotal questions. Firstly, “How do I interact with a person I do not know?” Secondly, “What could be a common ground between myself and this person?” Valentina develops these questions using her relational skills and techniques she earned in her former jobs as photographer and bartender; welcoming her guest with a cocktail of her own invention.

Every day we need to lay the foundations for our future.

Erion Maloku – Restaurant Manager

Albania

Take control of your life; don’t let others do it.

Mesmaide Rodriguez – Store Manager

Cuba

If I think of Alto Adige, the first thing that comes into my mind is tourists; they just have me die laughing, they are so hilarious!

Juan Pablo Acero – Social Worker and Photographer

Colombia

I’m constantly on the lookout for something new.

Lyudmyla Solomon – Janitorial Engineer, Sales Representative and Member of “Consulta Immigrati”

Ukraine

I learned how to cook South Tirol food. I tell its history through my dishes.

Roman Rodriguez Gonzales – Cook

Peru

When I give a concert it is like the audience becomes the instrument to express my feelings.

Jona Fanney Svavarsdottir – Opera Vocalist and Music Instructor

Iceland

I’ve been working so hard to make my dream come true; to become a freelance professional.

Brunilda Hysaj – Mechanical Engineer

Albania

To grow people just like me, who come from foreign countries; this is one of my targets.

Noman Muhammad – Banqueting Manager

Pakistan

I strive to have faith in everything I do; keeping it going, despite the difficulties.

Mame Balla Fall – Metalworker

Senegal

Moving to Italy has changed my perception of how I view things.

Masoud Valizadeh – ICT Systems Engineer

Iran

My challenge is to ease the process of communication and comprehension for everyone.

Anuka Hossain – Health Worker, Cultural Linguistic, Mediator and Chairman of “Consulta Immigrati”

Bangladesh

Manuel Montesano

Hamkâri

Chapter 5

Hamkâri

“Hamkâri, in Persian, means collaboration. If we all—everyone in the world—work together, we’ll create a beautiful world”, says Mahdi Heydari during an interview. And it exactly that: work is one of the main reasons for emigration, adds Gabriel Maria Sala, anthropologist, and psychologist. These are some of the ideas collected by the author as he listens to the stories of 11 people, discovering what they left behind in their land of origin, what they found in their land of arrival, and the meaning that they now attach to the concept of Heimat.

To fight for myself and for those who strive to emerge, this is the footprint I aim to leave.

Albana Loka – Psychologist and Psychotherapist

Albania

To where do I belong? I belong to the environment that surrounds me.

Zoran Aleksov – Social Worker

Macedonia

For me music is breath, it is to feel; it’s emotion, it’s freedom.

Edlir Cano – Orchestral Professor

Albania

I learned what I'm worth when I realized I felt like a bridge that connects the Italian culture with the Moroccan culture.

Abdallah Chniouli – City Counselor

Morocco, Italy

Everyone carries their own history, culture and ancient traditions; this is our treasure trove which enlivens our country.

Gabriel Maria Sala – Psychologist and Anthropologist

Italy

Peruvian folks have a solid foundation. They work, love and respect each other.

Paola Carbajal – Nurse, Founder of a Social, Religious and Cultural Community committed to charity

Peru

My mother is a great cook; she taught me her wonderful dishes.

Juan Carlos Rojas – Restaurant Owner

Colombia

I’ve always felt very welcomed everywhere I’ve been, yet with the awareness of being a stranger in foreign land.

Daniela Rodriguez Campedello – Cultural Manager

Bolivia

I don’t care about becoming famous, I just need to look people straight in the eye; there, I’ll know if my poetry has reached their hearts.

Mugdin Cehaic – Poet and Painter

Bosnia-Herzegovina

What matters to me is to find people who know how to listen.

Mahdi Heydari – Carpenter

Afghanistan

First of all I’m a human being; that’s my message for everyone.

Wendy Joseth Merlo Beltran – Cultural Linguistic Mediator

Bolivia

Asia De Lorenzi

Stories of a certain scale

Chapter 6

Stories of a certain scale

"Stories of a certain scale" was born out of a desire to learn more about the local realities involved in catering - from kiosks and bistros to restaurants and pizzerias. Food brings people together from different backgrounds, through traditional or experimental ingredients and preparations.