Friday 23 May, 3.00 pm – Peres Hall “The Words of Water”
Laguna. Liquid Earth
20 April 2026
Umberto Sarcinelli and Stefano Stafuzza
Laguna. Liquid Earth
H.15.00, Peres hall / “Le parole dell’acqua”
The lagoon is anything but an empty space: it is the interplay of land and water, salt and fresh, a living entity that pulsates with the tides.
It is shaped by the contrasting forces of the rivers, which deposit sediment, and the sea, which erodes it. In the midst of this stands humankind, which has been able to derive great benefit from its resources.
Between the historic mouths of the Isonzo and Tagliamento rivers, the northernmost lagoon in the Mediterranean has formed, a meeting point for peoples and cultures from Europe, North Africa and the Near East. A fluid, mythical and magical place, where daily changes intertwine, where the senses and emotions become blurred.
The story is told by Umberto Sarcinelli and nature photographer Stefano Stafuzza in conversation with Igor Jelen (lecturer in Political Geography at the University of Trieste) and Andrea Mascarin (Tiglio Edizioni).
The meeting will be held in Italian
Stefano Stafuzza
Born in 1968, he is an Italian freelance photographer. He began his career in 1985 with landscapes and nature photography before moving on to social reportage in the early 2000s.
He attended a social reportage workshop at TPW (Toscana Photo Workshop) with David Alan Harvey, Kent Kobersteen, and Alexandra Boulat.
From 2006 to 2009, he collaborated with National Geographic Slovenia on a reportage project about the traditional market in the city of Ljubljana.
In 2017, he was named a Finalist in the Photojournalist Awards by FAPA London – Fine Art Photography Awards, for his story on Dhobi Ghat, the open-air laundry in downtown Mumbai.
In 2020, he was named a Finalist in the Photojournalist Awards by FAPA London – Fine Art Photography Awards, for his story on the high tide that struck the city of Venice in the fall of 2019.
In March 2021, he was named 2020 Photographer of the Year for Friuli Venezia Giulia by FIAF (Italian Federation of Photographic Associations).
Umberto Sarcinelli
A professional journalist, he has worked for *Il Piccolo* in Trieste, *Il Corriere* in Pordenone, *Il Resto del Carlino* in Bologna, and *Il Gazzettino*. He contributes to magazines, radio, and television. He participated in a master’s program in photography with Italo Zannier, Mario De Biasi, and Helmut Newton at “Venezia Fotografia 1979.” He has written on geopolitics and defense, has been a correspondent in crisis zones such as Bosnia, Croatia, Kosovo, and Afghanistan, and has served as a speaker at various seminars on military communication. As a scholar of zooanthropology, he has studied large predators, participating in international conservation projects. He is the author of several books on environmental, historical, and sports topics. For Tiglio Edizioni, he has published: Forests Without Borders – AQUAE. The Places and Colors of Water – Doberdò del Lago. Visions of the Karst – Manzano. Impressions of a Territory – Tarvisio. A History of Forests, Rocks, Waters, and Peoples – From the Julian Alps to the Sea. A Journey into Biodiversity – Cansiglio. The Forest of History.
For the sports editorial line: Carnera. Boxing, in My Opinion.