#3 [ENG] Honeymoon Couple on the Terraces of the Duomo (Tight Shoes)

The best way to take in Milan at a glance is to see it from above. Even Mario De Biasi who had made the city his home, was convinced of this.Stop for a moment to observe the photograph. Do you recognize the scene of this image? It's the terraces of the Duomo: After all, who if not the Madonna enjoys the most impressive view of the city! In the enchanting context of the spires, backs to the camera, a modestly-dressed man and woman admire the view towards the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele. The photographer was attracted by one element in particular: the woman had taken off her shoes and placed them neatly next to her. Silvia De Biasi’s story continues.“My father returned to Milan from Nuremberg in 1946 and resumed his work at Magneti Marelli. It was in those years that the city entered his life. He discovered it little by little, walking or cycling. Milan was practically the only setting he had available, and the insatiable curiosity that had always distinguished him led him to photograph everything! Intrigued as he was by it all, he had no choice but to focus his gaze on the Duomo, symbol of the city. This was about 1952, and after the destruction of the war Milan was finally rising again and even the tourists were returning.On the back of this photo, my father noted: "Tourists on their honeymoon in Milan, or tight shoes". His eye could grasp detail in a glance, and this ability became the driver of his profession as a photojournalist. In this image, which is part of a long series of photographs dedicated to the Duomo and its visitors, the detail of the shoes becomes an opportunity to tell a fragment of history that’s so significant, even in its apparent marginality, to allow us to infer the story of a city and an entire epoch in it."