Peter Gallina
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Peter Gallina (1966) is a London born International Fashion and Advertising photographer based between Milan, Italy and Tokyo, Japan. His work has been used or commissioned for clients ranging from MTV to Cosmopolitan and is known for its constructed yet realistic spontaneity.
He has organised and held many photographic exhibitions of his work, the most recent of which was in Tokyo during the Spring of 2006. This exhibition, entitled "Love Tokyo. Seen Unseen", went on display at the “Gallery 21” in the Odaiba area of Tokyo. The fifty photographs were all printed by hand and with most measuring 2m by 1.5m it was one of the largest photographic exhibitions Tokyo has seen in recent years.
Other works by Peter Gallina include his series of photographs of women and their fantasies with chocolate. This body of work launched the world’s first chocolate festival in Perugia, Italy in 1995 and were seen in dedicated exhibitions in Paris, New York and are -to date- the only photographs ever to have been put on display at London’s Royal food emporium Fortnum and Mason in London.
The Tokyo 2006 exhibition was an even larger event than Peter Gallina’s first major show held ten years earlier at the Palazzo delle Esposizioni in Rome in 1996. Entitled "Circus Gallina" it included 84 photographs all suspended over a Vesuvius made of Pasta. The photography seen in the Japanese exhibit shown in Tokyo reflects Gallina’s signature style of "constructed spontaneity". A style that received international and professional recognition in 1997 when two of his photographs “Angel” and “Priest” were purchased by one of Europe’s Art Galleries – the Kunsthaus Zurich , during another exhibition of Gallina’s work made in collaboration with the avante garde Swiss pop artists – Yello.
Peter Gallina has also started to involve himself further with digital video. His first attempt at this genre in 2001 "Prayboys" resulted in his arrest by the Vatican State Police.
In 2007 he is currently involved in the filming of a trilogy of short films revolving around Tokyo by night and the social attitudes of young, modern Japanese women.
He is also an author and his first novel written for young adults "Kalandaka" has recently been published.
