Extract from 'I am your Mirror' photography book ...

Then, I met my eighth stranger. Her name is Giorgia. I called her the Poetess.

My first idea was to photograph myself and twelve strangers that I would find through the Internet.

These strangers, would be free to choose a time and place to be photographed. They could express themselves as they wished, and could be anonymous, or not.

I asked the strangers to look at the camera as if a mirror.

With her everything took a different direction. It was me that approached her, she didn't know anything about my project. She didn't see any advert on Internet. She didn't send me any email. I have chosen her moved by intuition, by positive energy. I followed my instinct.

All was different, I felt a stuck, maybe because she is a woman. In fact, she is the first woman who accepted to take part in my project.

‘ I am your mirror ‘ project includes 10 men and three women. One of them is myself.

Twelve strangers plus me.

I remember perfectly that day, when I met her.

I was working at Bank station. I was taking my break standing outside the Royal Exchange, during the lunch time, when I saw her coming out from the Royal Exchange, alone.

She stopped, next to the stairs.

Her beauty captured me.

She looked like those women, in those old pictures of “La dolce vita” of Federico Fellini, like Sofia Loren, when she was young.

She was dressed up with a tiny dress, light blue, and tennis white shoes. She had long light brown hair and big dark eyes. I looked at her with awe, I was fascinated by her way she was moving. She had that kind of grace that it is nice to see and you feel captures, fascinated.

Then, she lighted a cigarette and smoked it.

I didn’t know what to do. I was indecisive, only for few seconds. I decided to go and meet her. I head towards her, I got closer and I said – ‘ Hello, do you have a spare cigarette for me, please?'

She said – 'Yes of course" , smiling.

She looked down, opened her little red bag, took the packet of cigarettes out, they were Malboro Light and she gave one to me.

'Thank you' – I said – 'you are very kind'.

I took one cigarette, lighted and smoked it, looking in her eyes.

Then, to break the ice, I began asking questions, like I normally do, if I am interested in knowing people and if they are friendly.

We started to talk ...

She was looking for a job. She was living in London since a couple of months, and she was at the Royal Exchange to give her CV at the bar.She said that her friend was working there and maybe he could have helped her to find a job.

She used to work as a waitress in Italy, during the holiday in Summer, in an agritourism, close to Venice.

While she was talking, I realised that she had an Italian accent, and I said:

'Are you Italian?'

'Yes', she replays - 'Are you Italian as well?'

'Yes, I am Italian'. I answered.

Giorgia, the Poetess, ' I am your mirror' photography project, © Loredana Denicola, 2014/2015

We laughed.

In that exactly moment, I understood why I was attracted to her; there was that kind of Italian vibe, and passionate nature and beauty that was calling me. She said she comes from Venice.

'And you? Where are you coming from?' She asked.

'I come from the South, the opposite side of Italy, from Puglia'. I answered.

'Puglia is a beautiful place', she said. 'I have friends there and sometimes I go and visit them, during the summer. The sea is very blue'.

'Why are you here in London?' she asked.

'Because I am on a mission'.I answered.I will go back to Italy soon as I finished.'

I laughed at my answer.

She was very young, 21 years old, and you could feel it, looking at her skin, her smile and her eyes. On top of that, she was beautiful.

She reminded me what ‘innocence’ is. She had an interesting aura and I wanted to know her. She had those eyes of innocence, the face of an angel, a personality of a dreamer and a smile that hides pain.

She said that she was living in South London, in a flat with other people. And that her dream is to become an actress, working in a theatre and doing workshops. She had clear ideas about what she wanted to be in life, and she looked more mature than her age. I was liking her.

Then, I introduced myself, I said that I am a photographer and that I was doing a project, called 'I am your mirror'.

I said that I was looking for people with obsessions, fears, or even beauty, happiness and positivity and that she reminded me that innocence and pain I had, when I was her age and that I would have loved to take some pictures of her.

'What do you think?' I said. 'This is my business card.Give me a call and let me know'

She said that she was happy to help me with my project, so we exchange our numbers, I got back to my work, thanked her for the cigarette and we say bye!

I don’t know why I asked her to take part in my project. This time, I was choosing the subject, instead of her answering to my advert online.

She is the only one that I stopped in the street.