Letizia Lopreiato is a multilingual visual poet and social documentary film photographer from Dublin. Diagnosed with visual impairment in late 2017, Letizia decided to embrace film photography as a way to capture her way of seeing the world – thus introducing a multidisciplinary approach to her poetry.
Combined with over a decade of experience working in the tech industry in four countries (Denmark, Spain, Ireland and Italy), Letizia’s socially engaged art practice explores barrier-free ways to integrate technology into projects. , from conception of an idea to execution. She writes and performs her poetry in English, Italian and Spanish, and her work has been published internationally, in the UK, Ireland and Italy. The inclusion of multilingual speech in all of Letizia’s works, in the form of audiovisual installations, accompanies a creative style of documentary and fine art photography. Overall, this multi-layered, multi-disciplinary approach allows Letizia to refocus the relationship between text and image, creating a pan-sensory experience of her visual poetry practice, which includes her audience at all levels of physical ability. and neurodivergence.
In the words of Letizia: “Documenting reality through storytelling, exploring social issues and uncovering social injustice has always been central to my poetry. Now that opportunity has been made even more powerful, thanks to the vehicle of empathy that is the camera lens.
Have you always wanted to be a visual poet and an installation artist?
I started writing at the age of 12, participating in competitions at the national level level in Italy. Being recognized at such a young age was not something I was prepared for. on an emotional level again, so I continued to write pretty much every day for my entire life, filling newspaper after newspaper, but frightened by the depth and intensity of my own words.
In college, I studied… I am from a Magna Cum Laude Masters Degree in International research training Relations for Cooperation and Development. I have a bachelor’s degree in political studies with a major in the application of media to political and international organizations – I did both degrees at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan, Italy. I then did my MA thesis research at the Carsten Niebuhr Center for Multi-Cultural Heritage in the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, and over the years has acquired both business and postgraduate titles in creative and cultural entrepreneurship between Spain and Ireland,
My most formative work experience… youhey were two actually; my first real job after graduating when I left Italy in 2006 and working as an internal management consultant within the strategy and operations team of one of the the biggest companies in the technology sector, in Madrid, Spain; and when I returned to the same company here in Ireland, this time as program manager.
The most valuable thing I learned early in my career was… time management, a skill which I developed as a child both by observing and working with my late father in its small factory in Italy. I always liked spending time with him during my school breaks.
A common misconception about what I do is that… IIt’s more of a socially imposed stereotype than something I’ve personally experienced, but it’s tied to how people perceive an artist’s lifestyle and work. that their life is aproductive and unstructured. Coming from a family of entrepreneurs and given that I consider myself a art-preneur and a artistI’m really proud of the productivity and efficiency my own work-life balance has been. And not only for my creative productions, but in my professional life artist too.
My primary job responsibility is… do my inner work so that I am always able to keep the space necessary for my art to incorporate the best intention and energy with which I can shape it, and above all reach out gently and caringly to the public in need of hear the message I send.
Do you have a career mentor or someone you look up to/seek advice from? I believe in the saying that “the teacher appears when the student is ready”. It’s up to us as artists stay open to receive the lessons we need, in order to bring our creations everywhere they are called.
The biggest risk I’ve taken in my career so far… was to embrace my identity as an artist and trust the journey that led me to detach from everything that I thought was safe. To trust the deepest calling I have ever felt in my life – the one that drives me to be completely guided by my intuition and let go of the fight or flight mentality that I had. unconsciously shaped for myself over years of unprocessed grief – allowed me to finally heal and feel truly whole.
I wake up at… 6:30-7am, and have been since I started high school when I was 14.
The first thing I do every morning is… drinking a cup of tea with milk – another tradition I’ve had since I was a child and that’s how my mother used to wake me up. All my Irish friends have noticed my unconditional love for a good cup of tea with milk and biccies!
My morning routine… really started to take shape in 2017 when I started practicing yoga every day – whether in the yoga studio near my home or at home. Breathing, yoga and especially music are essentials for me when I wake up. i can’t go to work without music. I can’t really work without listening to music. Over the years, creating every day, I realized that music is my way of filling my cup.
I go to work in… walk if I can, but always with music in my ears.
I start my working day with… a cup of tea. During lockdown, I learned to detox from the habit of checking email and social media first thing in the morning and now I’m focusing more on my main non-creative work priorities. This way I get rid of the difficult part of the day first, so my mood improves and at 10:30 am I already feel more relaxed. Then I can focus on the non-routine and creative tasks that I enjoy the most.
My lunch break and what I have for lunch… this is definitely an area I could improve on as I never really prioritize breaks. Practicing yoga every day made me realize that lunch is no longer something I could underestimate, because without it I couldn’t work long on creative tasks. I’ve tried to take an hour off every day for lunch and make sure I eat enough to sustain me for the next six to seven hours.
The most useful professional tool I use every day… is my pen/pencil/graffiti pen. The central element of the art installations in my solo exhibitions is the handwritten poetry on the walls.
I save time by… prioritize tasks during the day based on a simple way to categorize the things I learned in my first year as a program manager; level of importance versus level of urgency.
I rarely go through my working day without… music and grounding exercises, and by grounding I even mean the simple act of using a few drops of essential oil on my wrists.
The best part of my day is… late afternoon/evening, because I used to go for walks near the channel near me. This is the closest place I know from where I can watch the beat flowing water. My daily walk along the canal is a real pleasure for me, a precious moment of well-being.
I know it’s been a good day though… I am relaxed when I go to sleep. F
Before going to bed… I will ensure that my eyes are cared for in the best possible way. If I carry tension in my body, I try to release it for a few minutes breathing before fall asleep.
I often prepare for tomorrow the night before by… blocking my calendar according to tasks. This has been by far one of the most useful lessons I have learned from my experience working in the technology industry. I set up reminders for some tasks on my mobile calendar that are absolutely essential for my time management during the day.
After a long week of work, I de-stress by… meet my relatives as much as possible. In In 2019 my mum decided to move to Ireland permanently so we could be close to each other as a family after my dad died. His presence in Ireland after spending 16 years away from my native countrygave me incredible strength that I channel into all the challenges life has thrown at me over the years. I am beyond grateful to my amazing local community and honored to call Dublin my home. BTo be able to share this joy with my mom and have her feel so welcome and loved is a real blessing.
The accomplishment I am most proud of is… to have succeeded in transforming grief into love through my art in the socially inclusive form that I had considered for my visual poetry project. This project was very close to my heart. It was a a four-year journey that culminated in my first pan-sensory installation for my The Timelapse – From Aheadautobiographical documentary. He was indeed chosen to be presented as a personal exhibition at the PhotoIreland Festival 2022 (until August 28 at the Printworks Building in Dublin Castle).
If you want to get into my work, my advice is… to strengthen your resilience through self-love.
Tell us about your work exhibited at Dean Art Studios:
My tactile photography for the visually impaired is by far one of the most extraordinary results I ever got. It has meant the realization of a dream that I have been working towards for a very long time now, and finally being able to touch with my own hands the love that I have channeled into this project, has truly changed my life. I now sees myself not only as a visual poet, but also as an installation artist dedicated to promoting social change. I don’t have the words to describe how grateful and honored I am to everyone. which has been part of my journey so far. Art is truly the highest celebration of love we can ask for; it is there to hold us by the hand, and lift us up, to show us the way back to light astill.
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