CLEMENTINA
CORTE

Her shots mainly portray adults and children of Pettinengo in the late 1800s and early 1900s, when the community was mainly made out of women: the men often worked abroad as bricklayers and only came back to the village during the winter.

“Going to have your photograph taken by Clementina was a celebration which emphasized all the important aspects in life.”

Clementina Cortewas the daughter of a notary. She never went far from Pettinengo and only started working as a photographer late in life, in the late 1800s. She worked at home with the help of her husband Giovanni Perino, a tailor, in her house Ca’ Da Rüss (Casa Ruccio) in Gurgo di Pettinengo.

The people in the photos are mostly textile workers: working women who wished to appear in their finest dress and brought their children along to have a worthy memory: many photos became souvenirspeople carried around when they moved for work.

The photographer’s social background had a major role in her choice of the unusual job for a woman at the time: it also affects the composition of the photograph as well as the look of the subjects who seem elevated to a higher rank.

Perhaps it was the beauty of these photographs that made it possible to preserve so many documents that almost represent a memoir with a dominant them: the woman as seen by a woman.
Come visit us in Villa Piazzo and buy the book about Clementina Corte by Sergio Trivero: discover the magical world of Clementina Cortethrough her shots.