'Slow summers, fast thrills, Cesenatico' / Anjelica Angwin
Anjelica (she/they) is a Cancer; born and raised in Melbourne. She is a photographer, writer and actor with a penchant for tackiness and its intersection with taste. Think – sickening desserts, tiny bags, elfin creatures and Ed Hardy. In 2019 Anjelica lived in Berlin, and while on holiday in Italy rediscovered her love for theme parks. The series captures a slow summer in Cesenatico – the calm before the storm – where a blissful innocence and nostalgia rings true. It offers a foreboding and poignant reminder of time soon stolen, of joy, loss, and seismic change.
The shots are taken at two, maybe three, parks in Cesenatico, Italy. It’s a small port town on the Adriatic coast, kind of like an Italian Rosebud for Australians.
I am drawn to the tacky or trashy character of theme parks. They’re gaudy and gimmicky, and I love the colourful flashing lights and manic energy. There’s a soundtrack of tinny, unoriginal music (or top 40) layered with a cacophony of squeals and shrieks. Mechanical rides forcibly swing, drop or spin as your stomach drops and your pulse accelerates. The staff stare at you blankly, in an apathetic-bordering-on-deadpan mood, eager for you to leave so they can return to their phones. It’s so much fun.
At the time, I had no idea of the global shift which was about to occur – although it did feel like time moved differently in Cesenatico. It was slower, thicker, suspended even. Or like I’d gone back in time. There was a nostalgia reminiscent of a slower style of life, filled with simple satisfactions: the beach, orange sunsets, and ice-creams at the theme park.
Now, looking back there’s a more profound sadness. I feel for the people of Italy and how acutely the pandemic struck them. When I look at the works, I think of my year living in Europe and the hazy vision of returning. I think of my home in Berlin and long summers. I think of being a kid and feeling lost or scared about the future, of holidays, of life and death. It’s all very memento mori.
Follow Anjelica on instagram: @anjel_ica
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