Roma—Dieter Janssen

The Colosseum today is almost two millennia old and that history is clearly played out on its surfaces. An attempt by preservationists to prevent further erosion of the stone, concrete and brick work has resulted in new layers of occupation, one part of which these images seek to explore.

The Roma series collects a few images of the conspicuous hand-forged ‘staples’ that are keeping the Colosseum from further collapse. A temporary solution, these pieces have been in place long enough now to carry their own experience.

All Images: Courtesy of the artist

Dieter Janssen is an architect based in Toronto, working collaboratively with other designers, architects, engineers and artists. As an architect, exploring photography has presented an opportunity for both understanding form & phenomena, as well as offering a view toward the cultural dimension of how people engage with spaces, remake and are remade by them through their occupation. That a space can have many characters while remaining effectively constant - as though with multiple personalities - is part of this toolkit for Architecture. The camera offers a means for capturing & fabricating those characters.