Visioni dall'oltre mare. Utilizzare i film di famiglia appartenenti agli emigrati siciliani come chiave di lettura del presente

The history of migration cannot fall other than in the domain of public history, insofar as it avails itself of photographic albums, diaries, home movies or other evidence belonging to migrant families, that is 'assembled' as a result of the interaction of the historian and the owners of material. Considering that history is inseparable from a type of transience that cannot be counter-acted by the preserving work of memory1 and memory has played a crucial role in the past 50 years in both academic and social debates, we need to develop new practices and concepts able to produce a different vision of the history of these families. This paper takes the form of a visual essay to present the results of the arts-based practice exercises conducted in the frame of my PhD project that experiments with and reflects on the epistemic value that these practices can acquire for public history. In its attempt to shed light on new approaches to research, the paper draws on the concept of the sea as a place of encounter, where union and separation, belonging and alienation coexist.