I meet Ciro. Ciro Pipoli was born in Naples in 1996. There he grew up and became a photographer. Four years ago, one of his photos went viral on the Internet and gave him exposure that led him to work with Nike, Dolce & Gabbana or Aticco and to publish his first photography book in the city.
I would venture to say that tutto passa, except for his love of the city: raised in Quartieri Spagnoli, everything in him oozes Napoli. And that is exactly what he captures in his photos: there’s no smoke and mirrors, he doesn’t try to be cool, he is. And there are very few things more powerful in a moment when everything is staged…
We begin our 24 hours in Naples with breakfast at the Bar Rosati (piazza Trieste e Trento 47), just as the city is waking up. He orders two veri caffè napoletani at the bar, where he’s greeted because, although Naples is a big city, it remains a place where everyone knows each other. That makes it welcoming, familiar, intimate. As if it were immune to the march of time and to speed. Here if you go to the bar and it’s been a while since you were there you’re asked where you’ve been.
The sfogliatella, typical of the city, is almost a must. It can be frolla or riccia. I order mine filled with ricotta cheese. A delight. With coffee in my cup, we head out to walk, because honestly, there is nothing better to do in Naples than wandering, roaming its streets, talking to people, stepping into churches you come across. “All the life of the city happens on the street, and that is something I miss a lot in other cities when I visit them, they’re beautiful but I can’t breathe them the same way, it’s hard to see their people,” Ciro tells me. I nod and think that it’s very Mediterranean, this habit of going out to walk and see what happens.
