For a few days, Piazza Duomo has had a new face. Or rather, more than two thousand of them.
Large black-and-white portraits of people from L’Aquila and the towns hit by the 2009 earthquake have covered the ground of the city’s main square. Visitors walk among the photographs, stop to look at them and sometimes recognise themselves, a relative or a friend.
The installation is part of Inside Out – The People’s Art Project, created by French artist JR. The global project brings ordinary people into public spaces, turning their portraits into large collective works.
In L’Aquila, the photographs tell the story of a community through the people who live in it. The portraits were not taken in a traditional studio, but across the city and its territory.
“We went into school gyms, photographed sports teams and met local associations and communities,” the organisers said while presenting the project. “We wanted to put people at the centre.”
The result is a huge open-air portrait of L’Aquila. Different generations, stories and neighbourhoods come together in the same square, creating an image of the city that is both personal and collective.
There is also an old local expression: “Go and see if I’m in the square.” It is usually a playful way of telling someone to go away. These days, however, many people really are in Piazza Duomo, at least in their photographs.
The artwork is part of the programme for L’Aquila Italian Capital of Culture 2026. During the opening night, images, backstage videos and an original soundtrack were also projected onto the buildings surrounding the square.
The installation turns Piazza Duomo into more than an open-air gallery. It becomes a place where the city can look at itself, remember its past and show its identity through the faces of its people.
