Artist Fabrizio Vatieri Discusses Multidisciplinary Practice and Naples' Overtourism in Interview

Italian artist and photographer Fabrizio Vatieri, born in Naples in 1982 and currently based in Milan, discussed his multifaceted career in a recent interview. With architectural training, Vatieri works across photography, performance, and sound to explore human interventions in domestic and urban spaces. His recent work 'Undercore' was presented during Milan Fashion Week Men's at an event promoting the book 'Napoli Infinita,' curated by former Gucci creative director Sabato De Sarno. Vatieri's practice has been shown internationally, including at Documenta Kassel (2022), Malta Biennale (2024), and the Thessaloniki Photo Biennale (2016). Between 2012 and 2019, he co-founded Pelagica, a Mediterranean research platform that participated in the Tirana Mediterranean Biennale (2017). His editorial projects include 'Dominare Spiritualmente il Progresso' (2017), 'Pensavo Fosse Amore' (2022), and the album 'Standards of Living' (2023). Vatieri also teaches photography workshops in high schools, aiming to develop sensitivity toward non-photogenic subjects, and co-founded the Milan venue Palinurobar. In the interview, he addressed overtourism in Naples, arguing that the issue stems from resource management and displacement rather than tourists themselves. He views authenticity as an evolving concept and emphasizes examining who benefits from tourism-driven transformations. Vatieri's artistic trilogy on domestic utopia and urban change includes performances like 'Dominare spiritualmente il progresso' (2017) and 'Buchi nell'acqua' (2018).