Absence captured by the camera

Two young girls hold each other while standing in front of the remains of their student house that claimed the lives of too many of their precious friends when it came crumbling down.

Barely three months have elapsed since 297 people perished in the earthquake of L'Aquila, Italy, on April 6, shaking the historical centre to its core.

In an attempt to document the tragic happenings in the Italian region of Abruzzo, The Times photojournalist Darrin Zammit Lupi travelled to L'Aquila a few days after the disaster hit the city.

His 48-hour experience has been translated into a 40-piece exhibition titled The Presence Of Absence, which opens tonight at the Old University courtyard (MITP) in Valletta as part of Evenings on Campus 2009.

The theatre space has been transformed using the few means available: the hollow wooden platforms normally used to create the tiered seating surface on which folding chairs are placed.

They have been set upright, like adjacent domino pieces lining the theatre's perimeter in a rounded/rectangular fashion, aiding the flow of images seemingly suspended upon them. The platforms also give the feeling of, and perhaps mirror, the mediaeval walled city of L'Aquila and viewers will feel the sense of containment which Mr Zammit Lupi has tried to recreate.

The idea of a recreated atmosphere has also been augmented by a photograph of three by two metres, showing random debris and rubble, which has been purposely laid out on the floor and meant to be trodden upon by visitors.

Although certain elements add an installation-like "feel" to the display, Mr Zammit Lupi said: "This exhibition is not about making a conscious statement... it is about creating an atmosphere and getting people to think a bit about the disaster".

At first glance, the display has a distinct predominance of blue, reflecting the amount of time the photographer spent in the largest of the tent cities - Piazza d'Armi. There is an overall lack of human presence, which is unusual of Mr Zammit Lupi, a people-oriented photographer, even though the human element is omnipresent and consistent throughout.

"I did not have the luxury of waiting for the ideal light... I had to work with what I had and I also had to work very, very fast."

He also had to take certain safety precautions, especially from potentially-crumbling walls. This held him back from coming up with more dramatic or artistic shots.

The result is that many of his photos are almost abstract, with a predominance of colours and a juxtaposition of elements and details bringing the images to life. Yet, the images simultaneously represent a very clear picture of the environment in the earthquake's aftermath.

The exhibition runs till August 6. It is open on weekdays between 5 and 8 p.m.