The Museo Nazionale del Risorgimento Italiano in Turin has opened a comprehensive photography exhibition titled "RITRATTI. Collezione Florence e Damien Bachelot," showcasing nearly 90 original photographic works from one of Europe's most significant private photography collections. The exhibition, running from July 11 to October 5, 2025, presents a sweeping exploration of humanity through portraits spanning from the early 20th century to contemporary times.

Curated by Tiziana Bonomo, the exhibition takes visitors on a journey through the evolution of photographic portraiture, featuring works by legendary photographers from Lewis Hine to Nan Goldin. The collection offers a visual narrative of extraordinary intensity, examining humanity through myths, current events, and raw emotions captured through the lens of master photographers.

Among the standout pieces is Brian Blake's iconic photograph of Pablo Picasso attending a bullfight, alongside Lewis Hine's powerful documentary work from the first half of the 20th century. Hine used photography as an instrument of social activism, capturing the faces of Italian migrant children in the United States to expose the harsh realities of child labor. The exhibition also features contemporary perspectives from Paul Graham, who documents invisible people living on America's streets, and presents an unprecedented selection of Nan Goldin's work through two contrasting images that showcase both rigor and eccentricity.

The exhibition is thoughtfully structured around four thematic sections: Myths, Emotions, Society, and Current Affairs. This organization reflects how the portrait genre has evolved long before the era of selfies and social media self-narration, following its own distinct path while reflecting changes in morals, identities, and worldviews. The curatorial approach demonstrates how photography has moved from documentation to political commentary to artistic experimentation, fundamentally redefining the language of photography over the decades.

Iconic portraits of cultural figures such as Audrey Hepburn and Ernest Hemingway are featured alongside a rare lightbox dedicated to Brigitte Bardot, specially designed by Elio Sorci, the renowned photographer famous for capturing La Dolce Vita era. The exhibition balances these celebrity portraits with intimate glimpses of everyday humanity, captured through the lenses of master photographers including Dorothea Lange, Saul Leiter, William Klein, Susan Meiselas, Elliott Erwitt, Nan Goldin, and Mohamed Bourouissa.

Curator Tiziana Bonomo selected Saul Leiter's "Lanesville" (1958) as the exhibition's emblematic image. This photograph captures a moment of profound intimacy, depicting a sleeping nude woman delicately framed through a half-open door, with the sea and road visible in the background. The work perfectly embodies Leiter's inimitable style, concentrating charm, mystery, and beauty while demonstrating his intimate and delicate approach to capturing humanity through his original use of color that makes images vibrant yet suspended in time like memories emerging from the past.

Particularly moving are the soldiers photographed by Gilles Caron in Israel (1967) and Ireland (1969). These figures embody solitude, loss, and humanity wounded by conflict, becoming universal symbols of war's devastating human cost. Caron's work demonstrates photography's power to transform individual suffering into collective understanding and remembrance.

The exhibition features an impressive roster of 50 photographers spanning multiple generations and geographical regions. Artists include Helena Almeida, Lola Álvarez Bravo, Diane Arbus, Bachelot-Caron, Nathalie Baetens, James Barnor, Juan Barreto, Thomas Boivin, Édouard Boubat, Mohamed Bourouissa, Brian Brake, Gilles Caron, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Roger Catherineau, Philippe Chancel, Bruce Davidson, Sandra Eleta, Véronique Ellena, FLORE, Mario Giacomelli, Nan Goldin, Arlene Gottfried, Paul Graham, Sid Grossman, Harry Gruyaert, Dave Heath, Laura Henno, Nicolas Henry, Ken Heyman, Lewis Hine, Nhu Xuan Hua, William Klein, Thomas Klotz, Saul Leiter, Leon Levinstein, Helen Levitt, Vivian Maier, Susan Meiselas, Carl Moon, Ozier Muhammad, John Myers, Marvin Newman, Janine Niépce, Ann Ray, Alain Resnais, Sanford H. Roth, Ivo Saglietti, SMITH, William Eugene Smith, Elio Sorci, and Paul Strand.

The exhibition has garnered significant institutional support, with Banca d'Alba serving as the main sponsor. Additional backing comes from the Piedmont Regional Council, the Deloitte Foundation, and endorsements from the City of Turin, Metropolitan City of Turin, Turin Chamber of Commerce, Institut Français, and Alliance Française. The project represents a collaboration between the Bachelot Collection, the Saul Leiter Foundation, and ArtPhotò, bringing together international expertise in photography preservation and curation.

Visitors can experience this comprehensive survey of photographic portraiture at the Museo Nazionale del Risorgimento Italiano, located at Piazza Carlo Alberto 8, Via Accademia delle Scienze 5, in Turin, Italy. The exhibition offers a rare opportunity to view works from the Florence and Damien Bachelot Collection in Paris, providing insight into how photography has documented and interpreted human experience across more than a century of social, political, and artistic change.