The Adventures of Guillier and Belinda
Year after year, working on her main project, photographer Alessandra Sanguinetti traveled through the suburbs of Buenos Aires, joining the life of the inhabitants of remote farms - people and pets, studying their relationship with each other, interaction with the earth.
In 1999, Alessandra met Guillier and Belinda, two cousins whose families lived and worked on farms. When Alessandra started photographing them, the girls were only 9-10 years old. She didn't know then that these pictures would become part of her most exciting photo project "The Adventures of Guillaume and Belinda, as well as the mysterious meaning of their dreams."
In it, Alessandra showed that the girls are actually a reflection of the same person. One is light, embodying a dream and a soul, the other is earthly, bearing the whole burden of existence. They are perceived in photographs not as an opposition, but as an addition to each other, emphasizing the multiplicity of manifestations of the same person. We can look at the world through the eyes of each of these girls.
We liked the incredibly touching life story of two girls. And now we will tell it to you with great pleasure.
1. Belinda and Rosita, 1998
2. Shepherds, 1998
3. Possum, 1998
4. Belinda's bouquet, 1999
Among the photographs there are works-observations and works-productions. Some reflect everyday life, others are dramatizations. "I tried to pay attention to both equally," says the photographer. — We played out scenes that, as it seemed to the girls and me, would reflect the key moments of their future life, and the rest that could be between these moments. They chose the role of actresses. But they didn't play someone else's plays. The scenarios were their own, they were playing out their imagined future. It is in childhood that we look for reasons that explain the behavior of us adults. And I found it very interesting to explore this issue with the help of Guillier and Belinda."
5. Camilla, 1999
6. Night hugs, 1999
7. Necklace, 1999
8. Immaculate Conception, 1999
9. Hydrangea, 1999
10. Five-minute longing, 2000
11. Summer bath, 2000
12. Blue clothes, 2000
13. Black Cloud, 2000
14. Models, 2000
15. Madonna, 2001
16. Rain, 2001
17. Funeral, 2001
18. Sister's wedding, 2001
19. Drink, 2001
20. Sunny day, 2001
21. Mirror, 2001
22. Ophelia, 2001
23. Guillier, 2001
24. The answer, 2002
25. The Discoverer, 2002
26. At the Bruderschaft, 2002
27. Guillier, 2002
28. Petals, 2002
29. Untitled, 2004
30. Summer, 2004
31. Kittens, 2005
32. Flowers of Life, 2005
33. In a quiet pool, 2005
34. Time flies, 2005
35. Light, 2005
36. The sixteenth anniversary, 2005
37. Sorceresses, 2005
38. Morning, 2006
39. Portrait, 2006
40. Dreams, 2006
41. Nanny, 2006
42. Belinda and Pablo, 2006
43. In the shape of a heart, 2007
44. Tomatoes, 2007
45. Ferocious, 2007
46. "Wedding bed", 2007
47. Reality, 2007
48. Kiss, 2007
49. Mom, 2007
50. Drizzling, 2008
"Now Gilya is 18, and Belinda is 17. I'm still photographing them. But they no longer choose any abstract images. The roles that used to be a game for them are now real, and the girls decide whether they meet their expectations." Alessandra, 2007
51. Butterfly, 2008
Sanguinetti has been exhibiting since 1994, her works are kept in the collections of the International Center of Photography (New York), the Museum of Modern Art (New York), the Museums of Fine Arts in Boston and Houston. The photographer has received a number of grants and awards, is a member of the Magnum photo agency. "Adventures..." formed the basis of Sanguinetti's first major solo exhibition in New York in the fall of 2004.
Text: Elena Firsova
Keywords: Argentina | Growing up | Girls | Friendship | Adventures