Greif Alumni: Q&A with Davide Degano

How can contemporary Italian identity be defined? Davide Degano “Romanzo meticcio”

We periodically invite our alumni, artists we have featured in the past, to share their new work and projects with us. Davide Degano was part of Richmond Orlando Mensah & Daniel Kons’ Guest Room in 2021. “Romanzo meticcio” (Italian for “Mixed Race Novel”) examines Italy’s difficulties in accepting, embracing and understanding itself as a multicultural country. The project, recently published by Artphilein, establishes a link between the present, the colonial past, and the intranational and international waves of migration, inviting a critical attitude towards the imperialist and fascist legacies of the past and a careful analysis of their impact on contemporary society.

Der Greif: What prompted you to work on this visual "novel" and how does your project mirror novel-type of narrative?

My work draws inspiration from “Timira. Romanzo Meticcio” by Wu Ming 2 and Mohamed Antar Marincola, which intricately blends reality and fiction. The book tells the story of Isabella Marincola, a Somali-Italian woman navigating Italy’s colonial and postcolonial eras. As a “meticcio”–a term offensively defining people of mixed ancestry–Isabella's life reflects struggles with identity, belonging, and marginalization, while the narrative challenges dominant colonial histories by merging historical facts with fictionalized episodes. This approach inspires my exploration of ambiguity, urging me to question what is real and imagined. In my photographic practice, I interrogate dominant narratives and binary thinking that separate reality from fiction. I’m drawn to the rich "in-between" spaces where history and memory overlap. As an example of the liminal space I talk about, Italy’s unification in one nation is a topic often romanticized. Revisiting school textbooks reveals omissions: the South of the country became a colony in an imperial-like annexation. These omissions turn history into fiction, even while claiming factuality.

Der Greif: How do you represent a micronarrative such as the Italian colonial past and marginalizations in act and the effects on today's socialscape?

My work creates new imaginaries and cultural scenarios for the future by questioning Italian identity at its core. My research does this by focusing on the marginalized in a way that goes beyond rejection and victimisation. Professor David Forgacs’ “Italian Margins” has been a key influence, offering a framework for understanding how marginality is constructed in Italy, both geographically and socially. Equally relevant to my work is Activist Kimberlé Crenshaw’s theory of intersectionality, rooted in the work of African American feminists like Angela Davis and the Combahee River Collective. Intersectionality reveals how overlapping systems of oppression–racism, sexism, classism–shape marginalization, providing me a vital lens for examining Italy’s colonial past and its ongoing societal effects. Margins are not to be intended as peripheral spaces but as sites that expose power and exclusion. Margins are socially constructed, shaped by how society organizes space, identity, and belonging. Italy’s modern nationhood illustrates this, built on the marginalization of regions, languages, and communities deemed “backward.” For example, the promotion of standard Italian during the 19th century and Fascist era suppressed linguistic diversity, sidelining regional dialects and minority languages like Friulian, Sardinian, and archaic Slovenian, Albanian, and German. Policies like the 1923 Gentile Law reinforced these languages as “inferior,” erasing cultural identities to promote a homogenized, artificial national identity.

Der Greif: How personal is “Romanzo Meticcio” to you?

My upbringing in Sicily and Friuli, two extremes of Italy, shaped my understanding of how margins are constructed and my commitment to challenging these narratives. bell hooks’ essay “Choosing the Margin as a Space of Radical Openness” further inspired me. hooks reclaims the margin as a site of resistance and possibility, where new ways of thinking and creating emerge. This idea informs my work as I reframe margins not as spaces of deficiency but as arenas for critical reflection, cultural resistance, and transformation. “Romanzo meticcio” emerged from my desire to better understand and position my family's cultural heritage within contemporary Italian society. On my mother's side, my grandmother is Colombian, and on my father's side, my family is Slovenian, which went through the process of “Italianizzazione” (Italian word for “Italianization”) under the Fascist regime. My paternal grandmother’s name, for instance, was Italianized as part of this process. The project is personal, but I also see it as a way to connect with a broader audience, inviting Italians to look deeper into their own pasts. While “Romanzo Meticcio” is rooted in my personal experiences, I have to say that I don't enjoy making work that is overly self-referential (it's not that I don't enjoy consuming it as a viewer, but as a maker, I prefer to start with a personal element that I can expand and develop into something that resonates more universally). So, although it starts with my own story, my goal is to create a narrative that connects with others and encourages reflection on the broader cultural and historical context we all share.

Der Greif: Could you expand on the method you adopted to bring out your visual research?

My visual research is rooted in Italian photographic traditions, enriched by cultural influences from my studies in the Netherlands. I see tradition not as a limitation but as a broad foundation for exploration. Rather than seeking to create a "new language," I focus on mastering the visual language established by influential photographers like August Sander, Luigi Ghirri, Guido Guidi, and Gabriele Basilico, as well as contemporary figures like Larry Sultan, Todd Hido, and Alec Soth. Their ability to craft evocative narratives deeply informs my approach. For me, the story and ethical engagement with the people and cultures I photograph are paramount, transcending concerns about style or aesthetic. Building trust and understanding is central to my process, which aligns naturally with analog photography. Working with large- and medium-format cameras imposes a deliberate, disciplined approach, fostering transparency and intentionality in capturing each image. I think in terms of sequences rather than isolated images, which is why the photobook is central to my practice. It allows me to construct a cohesive visual narrative, where each image contributes to the story, creating a dialogue within the sequence that resonates as a unified whole.

Der Greif: How did you engage with the archives? Which archives did you come to confront?

Archives are central to my practice, serving as a bridge to the past and offering historical material new relevance through a contemporary lens. In Romanzo Meticcio, I engaged with unsettling archives, including the Manifesto della Razza and a 1930s elementary school notebook. These materials revealed the deeply racist ideologies taught to previous generations, confronting an uncomfortable yet necessary heritage. This engagement sheds light on the unresolved aspects of Italy’s history that influence its present struggles with multiculturalism. Beyond the fascist era, I explored post-fascist visual culture, such as 20th-century TV commercials that reinforced racial stereotypes and 1970s Italian blaxploitation films that perpetuated tropes like the “Venere Nera.” These portrayals exoticized and marginalized Black women, reflecting broader racial hierarchies that persist in Italian society. By integrating these archival materials, I aim to unpack the cultural roots of Italy’s challenges with diversity, offering context for understanding how historical narratives continue to shape its social fabric today.