Vesuvius Kids
Special acknowledgment to Monica Capezzuto for her pivotal contributions to this article.
Naples, a city with unexplored nuances and well-guarded secrets.
Through the eyes of Arianna Caserta (@ariannacaserta), visual culture researcher and film critic, today we will take a deep dive into some of the aspects characterizing this true resurgence of the city, now a cult phenomenon worldwide.
For years, Naples has been identified and narrated through the usual stereotypes, leaning towards one-dimensional toxic narratives that obscure the versatility of a city that has survived itself for over 2000 years and has been, over the centuries, a capital of Europe for culture, music, theater, and art in general. In every part of the city, the walls tell stories of an incredible community: rebellious, anarchic yet free, non-judgmental but welcoming and embracing. Thanks also to football triumphs, the world has set aside hostilities to delve deeper into the soul of the city, to the point that Naples is effectively revolutionizing the cultural system. The city's rebranding effort is complex, risking being associated solely with the multitude of restaurants and finger food spots, losing sight of the cultural renewal. The truth is that there is no specific redevelopment project behind this "renaissance," and there is a risk of tourist cannibalization of the city, identifying it with an assault that could distort its identity.
As Arianna says: “Anyone who has been familiar with Naples for more than 5 years has noticed a change that is not easy to theorize, and for that reason is incredibly disorienting. The thing is that it happened so fast that we haven't really had the time to reflect on it. [...] Living in Naples today means finding oneself in a state of confusion for which we have no idea who to blame. We don't even know if there is actually any blame at all. In my experience, I see it this way: from a standard visibility as a cultural city - the same many cities in Italy are subjected to - Naples has achieved a new kind of visibility, made of feelings and sensations promoted by the post-internet era: morbid fascinations and worshipping of trash content soaked in post-irony. No longer a postcard, but the background of an ugly magazine photoshoot. Issues such as gentrification and hyper-tourism - for which the city is not prepared at all - are certainly concerning, but the problem with the representation is what makes the specific case of Naples different from that of all other European cities where the exact same processes are occurring.” And continues: “Lately I read a very poignant analysis of the 'Liberato phenomenon' written by journalist Fabrizio Maria Spinelli, whose words could not be more fitting: <<Before Liberato, Naples has long lacked any representation of ordinary life. Instead, the recent narrative of Naples has always been a narrative either comic or devoted to the extreme (delinquency, underclass, slum porn). No trace of an average dimension. [...] Browsing through the appalling amount of novels about Naples, one is struck by the sulfurous proliferation of the same three or four stereotypes repeated endlessly and combined in various ways>>. With that, I'm not saying I believe the only way out is through exportable and well-packaged projects like Liberato, but the fact that it addresses a part of the population that has never been represented before is true. When there are no alternative representations, you end up convincing yourself that the ones that already exist are the only possible ones, even if they're lies. That's a harm Naples continues to inflict on itself, choosing to stay in the comfort of its existing brand. But new narratives are needed.”
For years, many have worked to dismantle those commonplaces that usually identify us in the rest of Italy and the world: pizza, sun, sea, mandolin, and the Camorra. And it is precisely this fixed representation of the city that makes the revitalization process difficult for Naples: getting to be known for what it really is, is not so simple because there is much more behind it. But in the end, it doesn't matter much because stereotyped representations reassure. The issue is that these do not prepare us for reality because they prevent us from seeing beyond the realities described in television narratives.
“I think there's an issue with this binary view, and that the very term 'contradictions' has been and continues to be harmful to the artistic production coming out of the city. The whole story of the 'heaven inhabited by devils' and all the narratives that oppose poverty and crime to beauty and kindness are exactly the abyss from which we should try to move on. I'm afraid this is a problem for young filmmakers as well: they don't really know where to start when narrating Naples, because they struggle to legitimize new stories that don't adhere to the calcified motifs traced by hundreds of cultural products. It seems to me that there is a fear of moving away from the code we relied on for such a long time. Evolution is exactly what I would like to see, but right now it's not vivid and present enough for me to reflect on it.”
Naples dans le regard des cinéastes
But, speaking of evolution, there is a side of consumer media that is resilient and does not surrender to a wrong, standardized, and redundant narrative: cinema. Today, the exhibition "Naples dans le regard des cinéastes" has begun. The Louvre in Paris celebrates Neapolitan cinema, always characterized by the art of mixing tragedy and comedy, poverty and nobility, with so much energy and fervor.
“I’m happy people out there can actually get familiar with masterpieces of Neapolitan cinema such as the films of Massimo Troisi or Totò, which are not only complex and thoughtful works of art, but also make use of a very intelligent humor that is a peculiarity of true Neapolitan culture: one that’s difficult to export superficially because it requires watching the films and grasping their context. However, I think celebrations and events regarding cinema should not always be monuments to the past. Retrospectives are fine, but they're very risky: as a visual culture researcher and film critic, I am not concerned with what has been in the past (studied, understood, repurposed on t-shirts, and counted among the masterpieces of cinema), but with how this solidified and recognizable history can influence future generations of artists. [...] What I mean to say is that, in order to please others (after so many years of no one liking Naples), we bask in old myths of the past which are fine, but they must have the function of a tool to look to the future, not to fold back and close in on themselves.” Habituation is a dangerous and misleading phenomenon: it distracts, lulls consciences, and standardizes individuals. But Naples, the real one, does not bend and is a forge of talents eager for redemption and to tell their stories, to shine in a light different from what everyone sees (or wants to see). Naples is a basin of carnal stories, a universe where disparities do not exist, it is a state of mind, an infinite story. Naples is the largest HOME in Italy, and everyone can be a part of it. It's not a geographical matter, it's a matter of belonging.
