Napoli Dipinta di Blu Visual Arts

My photographic elegy to Napoli football team's 3rd scudetto and the deep emotional imprint left upon the ancient and modern city of Naples.

I first came to Naples during Italia '90, aged just 19, and within days had tickets to Napoli's San Paolo stadium sitting in the Curva Sud with tifosi di Napoli (admittedly to watch England vsCameron)Like my brother who'd moved to the city in 1989, I fell instantly in love with the city and its football team and adoring fansMy brother fell deeper, first marrying a Neapolitan, and was soon travelling every Sunday to watch Napoli play, years later accompanied by his two Anglo-Italian sonsFor my part, living in London, I merely wore the Napoli shirt to my weekly football match in the park: first Lavezzi on my back, then very briefly Higuain, then Milik

Back in 1990, every wall, car, vespa, pizzeria and surface of the city had a scudetto emblem proudly boasting a '2' for Napoli's second triumph, all thanks to one Diego Armando MaradonaIt left a permanent image in my head and in my heartLittle did anyone know it would take another 34 years, and the renaming of the Napoli stadium in honour of Maradona himself, for Napoli to win its third scudetto

Visiting my brother, Colum, or Columbo as he's better known in Naples, this May, days before the scudetto was awarded to Napoli, I could only think of one thing: to capture the emotional imprint on the city this time with photography, and not just memories

With Dean Martin's famous song in my ears, I walked the streets my with Leica, and with pockets filled with film, went out to frame la bella città dipinta di bluFrom bottles of spumante to seaside shrines, high-end wedding dress ateliers, to the streets of Naples itself, here is my elegy to this ancient and modern city and testament to Naples' other religion, footballI hope that this photographic elegy to SSSC Napoli confirms the famous words of Bill Shankly - coach of that other football mad city, Liverpool:"Somebody said that football's a matter of life and death to you, I said 'listen, it's more important than that'."

Kit Fordham, July 2023
A2 Framed Prints £95 @the_kitographer" Target="_BLANK">br>@the_kitographer
kitfordham.com

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