ENNUI

PHOTOGRAPHY

Jul 21

With ENNUI, Giuliana Borrelli reflects on the quiet weight of disconnection and the search for self within the spaces we call home. Moving between her childhood home in Italy and her current life in Norway, the project traces a deeply personal journey — one marked by silence, longing, and the slow, transformative act of reclaiming identity.

Photography Giuliana Borrelli

When I began working on this project, I didn’t realise that photographing my home was, in many ways, to become closer to my family, while also confronting the loneliness I often felt in their presence. Throughout my childhood and teenage years, I frequently felt voiceless, with little space to exist as my own person. Over time, I lost touch with my sense of identity, becoming someone shaped by the expectations and directions of others.

Moving abroad initially deepened these feelings of disconnection. I felt lost, carrying a fractured sense of self with me, until I moved to Norway in 2019. Slowly, things began to change. I realized that the source of my struggles was not being in touch with myself and so, regaining that connection became vital. Owning a space of my own became a turning point, changing how I related both to my childhood home and to my family, the people who, despite everything, remain the closest to me.

Through images, I document the people, space, and landscape of my home in Italy, emphasising the longing and the ties that connect us. At the same time, I photograph my home in Norway, what has now become a nest of refuge.

“Photographing my home was, in many ways, to become closer to my family, while also confronting the loneliness I often felt in their presence.”

About Giuliana

Giuliana Borrelli (b. 1990, Italy) is an Italian photographer based in Bergen, Norway. She holds a BA in Photography from the University of Westminster in London (2020) and is currently pursuing an MFA at the Faculty of Fine Art, Music and Design, University of Bergen. Working with photography, her practice explores the concept of home and the relationships she forms with spaces — particularly those she considers places of comfort.

To see more of her work follow her on Instagram or visit her website

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ENNUI

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ENNUI

“Photographing my home was, in many ways, to become closer to my family, while also confronting the loneliness I often felt in their presence.”

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