Nuorese Cultural DistrictPiero Pirari (b. Nuoro, 24 June 1886–d. Nuoro, 9 September 1972) was an Italian photographer.
Piero Pirari
Description
Son of the painter Giovanni Antonio Pirari Varriani, he was born into a well-to-do family and leading figures from the Nuoro cultural milieu were regular visitors at his home. Influenced by Antonio Ballero, Sebastiano Satta and Raffaele Ciceri, he developed a passion for photography and became an important photographer.
He collaborated with Sebastiano Guiso, and together they explored the Barbagia region, immortalising its people and landscapes. His photographs depict rural life, the city of Nuoro and its inhabitants and form an invaluable historical document that was a major inspiration for young artists like Giovanni Pintori. He looked at Sardinia with fresh eyes and his work is still admired today for its beauty and authenticity.
Pirari’s rich body of work remains among the most interesting expressions of a new perspective, in part due to the means used: the point of view of a Sardinian turning his gaze to his land, its nature, its customs and traditions, its inhabitants and the illustrious members of its cultural sphere. While his portrait of Sebastiano Satta is famous, the faces of men and women dressed in the traditional costume of their villages are just as intense and his representation of rural flora and fauna just as fascinating.
A pioneer of innovative technology in Nuoro, he also made 16 mm colour films. In 1960, he participated in the International Amateur Film Festival at Cannes, presenting a film titled Orizzonti visti da Grazia Deledda (Horizons seen by Grazia Deledda). This experience attests to his awareness of his personal capacity and ambition to promote Sardinia across the globe. The discovery of the documents relative to this event confirms the importance of his contribution to the film world.
