Johnny Ricci: The Photographer Who Captured Milan's Art Scene

Johnny Ricci, born Giovanni in 1935 due to fascist naming laws, began his photography journey at 16 when a cousin gave him a Rondinella Ferrania camera. After his father's death in 1954, he moved to Milan and joined Vittorio Cera's photo agency in 1958, working menial jobs in exchange for learning. In 1963, he went independent, setting up studio in a former Franciscan cell in Piazza del Carmine. Ricci became a key figure in Milan's art scene, photographing Piero Manzoni in 1961 with his 'Artist's Shit' cans, and working with artists like Luciano Fabro, Dadamaino, and Fernando de Filippi. He frequented Bar Giamaica in Brera and documented exhibitions at galleries such as Zita Vismara and Valeria Belvedere. Ricci avoided flash, preferring natural light, and was known for solving complex photographic challenges, including a de Chirico sculpture show. He later partnered with Annalisa Guidetti, embracing digital technology. Ricci remains active but shuns exhibiting his own work, viewing his role as a service to art.