02 Moving Image

Brothers, Nostalgic Object – 2015

An observational video exploring childhood, power and the temporary meaning we attach to ordinary objects

Brothers, Nostalgic Object observes Matteo and Arturo, two brothers playing by the sea in Santa Marinella. A discarded piece of wood becomes the focus of their attention, provoking possession, negotiation and rivalry before eventually drifting away.

Through a simple encounter, the work considers how an ordinary object can acquire emotional value through the relationships and memories projected onto it.

Brothers, Nostalgic Object developed from Norman Mine’s existing relationship with Matteo and Arturo, the sons of a close friend, and from observing the unguarded dynamics that emerge between them through play.

Filmed by the sea in Santa Marinella, the work centres on a piece of discarded wood that temporarily becomes important to both brothers. Its material value is insignificant, yet through attention, possession and negotiation it begins to carry emotional weight, exposing subtle shifts of affection, competition and power between them.

The camera does not impose a narrative on their interaction. Instead, it remains close to an existing relationship, allowing gestures, reactions and small changes in behaviour to determine the structure of the work.

When the object eventually drifts out to sea, its importance disappears almost as quickly as it emerged. What remains is the memory of the encounter.

The work considers nostalgia not as something inherent in an object, but as something we construct around it, asking how ordinary things become repositories for relationships, experiences and moments that can no longer be recovered.

Shot and edited by: Norman Mine
Featuring: Matteo and Arturo
Location: Santa Marinella, Italy