MAL DE MER
Mal de Mer by Claudio Majorana delves into the theme of adolescence, exploring it as a pivotal stage where we first grapple with the personal issues that often shape our lives. Interested in shedding light on the impact of generational trauma on teenagers and young adults, Majorana travelled to Lithuania, a post-Soviet country with a deeply scarred political past and the highest suicide rates in Europe. Against the background of brutalist concrete witnesses, he pictured a nuanced coming of age between youth summer camps, forests, cemeteries, and other arbitrary settings in Vilnius and on the outskirts of Lithuania. Beyond their thoughtful look, the kids portrayed in Mal de Mer brim with questions, fears, and doubts; with their thoughts running at maximum speed. After graduating in medicine with a thesis on social cognition during adolescence, Majorana focused on photography to continue exploring the coming-of-age years through his artistic practice and, just recently, by pursuing psychotherapy studies. His attention is attracted to those moments when, as individuals navigating the complexities of being, we are figuring out life and may possess answers yet feel hesitant to articulate them, trapped by insecurity. In the ageless journey of self-expression, feeling free to share one’s truth and reveal one’s self to others is the toughest struggle and the most sublime achievement.
