We are still dreaming - Matteo Trevisan

We are still dreaming - View of the Chiomonte TAV construction site, located...

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View of the Chiomonte TAV construction site, located under the E70 motorway.
According to the latest updates of the TAV project, here is where the tunnel for the high-speed trains linking Turin and Lyon is going to emerge. The area is completely militarized, surrounded by two lines of barbed wire barriers, and to enter the construction site it is necessary to pass two armed checkpoints.
March 2022, Chiomonte, Torino, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

View of the Chiomonte TAV construction site, located under the E70 motorway. According to... READ ON

"We are still dreaming"

What does it mean to live a life that forces you to always question the goodness of your country's institutions and that leads you to consider the figures who should protect you as a threat to your freedom?

"We are still dreaming" is a visual investigation of the community of young people under 30 who live in the Susa Valley, one of the wildest alpine valleys in Italy. This place holds the record for being the most militarized place in the country and for hosting the longest lasting protest movement ever in Italy: the No Tav.

The movement, originated in the early 90s, aims to oppose the construction of the high-speed railway line Turin-Lyon, considered a waste of public money and a harm to the territory.

In over 30 years of work and projects not even one meter of the 7 km of tunnels foreseen – which should serve the passage of the trains - has been realized.

With my project " We are still dreaming " I have visited and met many people from the community and tell my story of their struggle through their faces and surroundings. An intimate narrative of this new generation of young people who have never known a life without struggles, denunciations, arrests and protests.

We are still dreaming - Micol, 21 years old, at the permanent NO TAV presidium in...

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Micol, 21 years old, at the permanent NO TAV presidium in San Didero. "How do I imagine the valley without the TAV? I imagine it without the fear of being constantly stopped by police checkpoints, I imagine not being afraid of waking up one morning and discovering that I have a drill under my house. I imagine not being afraid anymore that the place I live and love will be devastated.
March 2022, San Didero, Torino, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

Micol, 21 years old, at the permanent NO TAV presidium in San Didero. "How do I... READ ON

We are still dreaming - A falconer holds a buzzard, a bird considered by the...

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A falconer holds a buzzard, a bird considered by the oldest traditions to be the messenger and protector of the air and a symbol of freedom. May 2022, Bussoleno, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

A falconer holds a buzzard, a bird considered by the oldest traditions to be the... READ ON

We are still dreaming - A 22 years old boy from the "Giovani NO TAV"...

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A 22 years old boy from the "Giovani NO TAV" movement – who prefers to remain anonymous - holds the movement's flag on one of the mountain peaks surrounding the Susa Valley. Many young people who are part of the movement are under a lot of pressure from the police.
March 2022, Valsusa, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

A 22 years old boy from the "Giovani NO TAV" movement – who prefers to... READ ON

We are still dreaming - The signs of a fire, presumed to be intentional, that...

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The signs of a fire, presumed to be intentional, that destroyed part of the
permanent NO TAV presidium in San Didero.
March 2022, San Didero, Torino, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

The signs of a fire, presumed to be intentional, that destroyed part of the permanent NO... READ ON

We are still dreaming - The Olivero Fugera family. The 67-year-old father, the...

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The Olivero Fugera family. The 67-year-old father, the 62-year-old mother and the two children, Chiara 24 and Edoardo 20, have always been part of the NO TAV movement. The father recently received a search warrant from the local police for charges yet to be defined.
March 2022, Giaglione, Torino, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

The Olivero Fugera family. The 67-year-old father, the 62-year-old mother and the two... READ ON

We are still dreaming - The rock of the mountain emerges under the concrete...

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The rock of the mountain emerges under the concrete casting inside the Turin-Lyon geognostic tunnel. The geognostic tunnel will be used to transport the ventilation system, the electricity and the water system inside the tunnels that will house the highspeed trains.
March 2022, Chiomonte, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

The rock of the mountain emerges under the concrete casting inside the Turin-Lyon... READ ON

We are still dreaming - Sofia, 21, inside her room in the village of Avigliana....

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Sofia, 21, inside her room in the village of Avigliana. "If I think of a place to which I am very attached, the presidium of Venaus comes to my mind. I like it a lot, perhaps because of its simplicity, and when I go there I feel at home. It may look like a meadow, but it is much more than
that. It is a place of life, struggle and simple joy.
March 2022, Avigliana, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

Sofia, 21, inside her room in the village of Avigliana. "If I think of a place to... READ ON

We are still dreaming - A tear gas fired by the police outside the Chiomonte...

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A tear gas fired by the police outside the Chiomonte construction site. In the woods around the TAV construction sites it is very easy to find tear gas of various kinds, which are thrown by the police to disperse the demonstrations outside the construction sites.
March 2022, Valsusa, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

A tear gas fired by the police outside the Chiomonte construction site. In the woods... READ ON

We are still dreaming - Nicolò, 23, inside the Tortuga tavern, where he...

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Nicolò, 23, inside the Tortuga tavern, where he works. The tavern is one of the most important meeting places for the young people of the NO TAV movement who live in the Susa Valley.
December 2021, Bussoleno, Torino, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

Nicolò, 23, inside the Tortuga tavern, where he works. The tavern is one of the... READ ON

We are still dreaming - Camilla, 25, inside her house in Mattie, a hamlet of...

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Camilla, 25, inside her house in Mattie, a hamlet of Bussoleno. "When I was little, we had a hut above Mattei, in Toglie. My grandfather used to tell me that there were partisans here during the war. He was often with them and if the war had gone on he would probably have
joined them. Unfortunately, my grandfather passed away when I was 11 years old, but deep down I always feel him with me because I think he lives on in the mountains he loved so much".
March 2022, Mattie, Torino, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

Camilla, 25, inside her house in Mattie, a hamlet of Bussoleno. "When I was little,... READ ON

We are still dreaming - The interior of a room in the village of Bussoleno, one...

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The interior of a room in the village of Bussoleno, one of the most important towns in the Susa Valley with almost 6000 inhabitants.
December 2021, Bussoleno, Torino, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

The interior of a room in the village of Bussoleno, one of the most important towns in... READ ON

We are still dreaming - Sara, 22, inside her room in the village of San...

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Sara, 22, inside her room in the village of San Valeriano. "I was only 5 years old and I didn't understand what the TAV was, I only saw white and red flags walking together. Then my memories were lost. Over the years my family moved away from the NO TAV movement because
police violence was getting stronger and stronger. It was only years later, as a teenager, that I approached the movement again and began to make new memories: moments of struggle and unity, all of us joined by a common goal that warms the heart "
March 2022, San Valeriano, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

Sara, 22, inside her room in the village of San Valeriano. "I was only 5 years old... READ ON

We are still dreaming - The caterpillar of the butterfly Zerynthia polyxena...

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The caterpillar of the butterfly Zerynthia polyxena Geyer, a protected species and included in the European "Habitats" and the Bern Convention. Considered to be of Community interest, it finds one of its habitats right near the Chiomonte Construction Site. TELT, the company that is working on the construction of the HST, together with the University of Turin, has initiated a research program in order to protect the butterfly's population by trying to move its habitat to another area. In this scientific program, corridors are created in the forest with the plants on which the butterfly feeds. To date, the results of the project are still unclear and the population living near the construction site is potentially in a dangerous situation. May 2022, Chiomonte, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

The caterpillar of the butterfly Zerynthia polyxena Geyer, a protected species and... READ ON

We are still dreaming - Cenischia stream, which originates in the French...

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Cenischia stream, which originates in the French mountains but flows for much of its course in Italy. May 2022, Novalesa, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

Cenischia stream, which originates in the French mountains but flows for much of its... READ ON

We are still dreaming - Giorgio, born in 1927, with his 29-year-old niece Maria...

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Giorgio, born in 1927, with his 29-year-old niece Maria Laura. At the age of 17, Giorgio joined the Val di Susa partisan group, considered one of the most important and largest partisan groups in Italy. To this day he is one of only two partisans still alive in the valley. Despite his age, he still paints, a passion he shares with his granddaughter.
March 2022, Valsusa, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

Giorgio, born in 1927, with his 29-year-old niece Maria Laura. At the age of 17, Giorgio... READ ON

We are still dreaming - Recognition document of the partisan group "Corpo...

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Recognition document of the partisan group "Corpo Volontari Della Libertà" inside the Resistance museum in Mompantero. The Susa Valley is historically famous for the importance of its partisan movement, the age of the young people who joined the movement corresponds to the age of the young people who are joining the "Giovani NO TAV" movement today.
March 2022, Val di Susa, Torino, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

Recognition document of the partisan group "Corpo Volontari Della... READ ON

We are still dreaming - A Statue of Our Lady, a symbolic and pilgrimage site by...

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A Statue of Our Lady, a symbolic and pilgrimage site by the Catholics for the Valley NO TAV movement, with the Chiomonte construction site behind it.

A Statue of Our Lady, a symbolic and pilgrimage site by the Catholics for the Valley NO... READ ON

We are still dreaming - Alessia, 25, in her house garden in Chiusa di San...

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Alessia, 25, in her house garden in Chiusa di San Michele. "I remember, years ago, two old ladies with NO TAV handkerchiefs around their necks. During a demonstration they suddenly burst into song and dance to a song of the movement, one of those that no one listens to anymore and that I don't even know. That was perhaps the moment when I understood what it means to be part of this community.
March 2022, Chiusa di San Michele, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

Alessia, 25, in her house garden in Chiusa di San Michele. "I remember, years ago,... READ ON

We are still dreaming - A plan inside one of La Credenza's lodgings. La...

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A plan inside one of La Credenza's lodgings. La Credenza is a restaurant in Bussoleno but also one of the symbolic places of the NO TAV movement, it is a meeting place and an accommodation where people who come to the valley to meet the movement are hosted.
December 2021, Bussoleno, Torino, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

A plan inside one of La Credenza's lodgings. La Credenza is a restaurant in Bussoleno... READ ON

We are still dreaming - Francesco, 25, inside the Mulini, one of the permanent...

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Francesco, 25, inside the Mulini, one of the permanent presidios that stands a few metres from the TAV construction site in Chiemonte. "The first strong memory of the movement dates back to the 8th december’s demonstration when the Venaus presidio was recaptured by the
NO TAV movement. We found the presidio all destroyed, clothes everywhere, a few books and a worker's helmet. I still remember holding it in my hands, it was blue and on it was written NO in red spray paint. We still have that helmet at home today.
March 2022, Val di Susa, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

Francesco, 25, inside the Mulini, one of the permanent presidios that stands a few metres... READ ON

We are still dreaming - The interior of the geognostic tunnel of the TAV...

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The interior of the geognostic tunnel of the TAV Chiomonte site. Several
environmental studies have shown that inside the mountain there is a large amount of asbestos, a substance which, if not treated appropriately, could cause major health problems for the site workers and the inhabitants of the Susa Valley.
March 2022, Susa Valley, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

The interior of the geognostic tunnel of the TAV Chiomonte site. Several environmental... READ ON

We are still dreaming - The San Didero presidium, which stands a few metres from...

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The San Didero presidium, which stands a few metres from the homonymous TAV construction site. The construction site is a heavily militarised area. The police is actually guarding an area that is currently empty and devoid of buildings. It is expected that in a couple of years
there will be a car port here and, fearing that the land will be occupied by the NO TAV movement, the police have already occupied the area in advance.
March 2022, Val di Susa, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

The San Didero presidium, which stands a few metres from the homonymous TAV construction... READ ON

We are still dreaming - The barbed wire surrounding the San Didero construction...

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The barbed wire surrounding the San Didero construction site. March 2022, Val di Susa,... READ ON

We are still dreaming - A specimen of the butterfly Zerynthia polyxena Geyer,...

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A specimen of the butterfly Zerynthia polyxena Geyer, preserved at the Department of Biology, University of Turin. May 2022, Turin, Italy. © Matteo Trevisan

A specimen of the butterfly Zerynthia polyxena Geyer, preserved at the Department of... READ ON

MATTEO TREVISAN

Matteo Trevisan - Photographer

Matteo Trevisan is a documentary and news photographer who lives between Rome and Gorizia. Matteo Trevisan è un fotografo documentarista e di news che vive tra Roma e Gorizia.